KIP KIPE licensing

A national payment institution license (KIP) is the default way of doing business in the Polish non-bank payment market.
A national electronic money institution (KIPE) license requires a larger capital commitment, but offers greater business opportunities than a KIP license

• • If your business has scaled to a high level of turnover from the start or has exceeded the transaction limits that bind a small payment institution (MIP – learn more), the default solution is to apply for a KIP license.
  • The KIP license is a months-long and laborious process, involving the development of several hundred pages of documentation. Its result, however, is a license that gives the right to provide all payment services, without transaction limits.
  • Every business has its own peculiarities. With a background in assisting in dozens of licensing proceedings, DLK Legal knows the most common problems, questions and weaknesses in the market. Most of your concerns will be answered in a flash, as we have answered them many times.
  • When preparing application documentation, it is easy to make mistakes – incorrectly qualifying services, presenting incorrect financial projections, not attaching complete documents and information. We work with regulators every day – we know what they expect and what they pay attention to. As you work on the application documentation, you will receive information from us if the intended services do not comply with the regulations and the financial forecasts are too optimistic.
  • The KIPE license entails higher capital requirements than the KIP license. KIPE’s advantage is its ability to provide electronic money services (in addition to payment services). Among other things, KIPE can issue an anonymous low-value payment card without having to comply with most AML obligations.
  • In the Polish reality, due to the approach of the local regulator, obtaining a KIPE license is much more difficult, and in most business models – impossible. Hence, leading participants in the non-bank payments market hold KIP licenses, not KIPE licenses.

Key information about KIP and KIPE licenses