A company for a crypto project is the legal entity through which a team develops a protocol or application, issues a token, holds the project treasury or provides crypto-asset services to clients. The jurisdiction for a crypto company is chosen by the type of activity. FATF standards treat exchange, custody of client assets and brokerage as the activities of providers that countries license or register; software development as such usually falls outside this scope. Registration in an offshore jurisdiction does not replace a license in the countries where the users live.
Classify the activity first
Describe the product by function and mark which of these you have:
- software development and a non-custodial wallet where the keys stay with the user;
- custody of clients' crypto-assets;
- exchanging crypto-assets for money or other crypto-assets, running an exchange;
- receiving and transmitting client orders, advice on crypto-assets;
- issuing a token: a utility token, an asset-referenced token or an e-money token;
- managing the project's own treasury and investments.
FATF standards require virtual asset service providers (VASPs) to be licensed or registered and to pass on originator and beneficiary information with transfers (the so-called travel rule). That is why any function that gives the company control over client assets changes how the product is classified.
European Union: MiCA and DAC8
MiCA. Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 on markets in crypto-assets entered into force in June 2023 and has applied in full since December 30, 2024. A transitional period allowed providers operating under national rules to continue until July 1, 2026 or until a decision on their authorization application. That period has now ended, and providing crypto-asset services to clients in the EU requires MiCA authorization.
DAC8. Council Directive (EU) 2023/2226 has applied since January 1, 2026. Crypto-asset service providers report information on users and their transactions to tax authorities, and EU countries exchange it: data for 2026 must be exchanged by September 30, 2027. The rules are based on the OECD Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF).
Other jurisdictions
| Jurisdiction | Regime | What matters |
|---|---|---|
| Singapore | Financial Services and Markets Act 2022, Payment Services Act | Since June 30, 2025, companies incorporated or operating in Singapore that provide payment token and capital markets token services only to clients abroad must hold a license; MAS has stated that it will generally not grant such licenses |
| Dubai (UAE) | VARA regulator | VARA regulates virtual assets on the Dubai mainland and in its free zones, except DIFC |
| British Virgin Islands | Virtual Assets Service Providers Act 2022 | Since February 1, 2023, VASPs operating in or from the islands register with the BVI FSC; separate requirements apply to custody and exchanges, and an authorized representative and an approved auditor are mandatory |
The corporate side of these countries is covered on the pages UAE Free Zone company, company in Singapore and offshore company in the BVI.
Banks and payment services
Banks and PSPs serve crypto projects with caution. To open an account, prepare:
- a description of the product and asset flows: who controls the keys, where funds come from and where they go;
- a legal opinion on the classification of the token and the activity;
- an AML/KYC policy, sanctions screening and transaction monitoring procedures;
- the origin of the founders' and the treasury's funds, including wallet history;
- the ownership structure down to the ultimate beneficial owners.
The list of documents for the company review is in the article KYC and KYB documents, and ownership disclosure requirements in the guide UBO and beneficial ownership disclosure.
Budget
For a project with a regulated activity, the budget includes the license and minimum capital required by the regulator, a compliance officer, AML systems and blockchain transaction monitoring, a smart contract audit, a legal opinion on the token, a financial audit and banking. For a purely software project the costs are closer to those of a regular IT company; a legal opinion confirming that the product is not a regulated service is still required.
Example
A team releases a non-custodial wallet as a software product. A year later it adds built-in exchange and custody of users' assets. From that moment the company provides services that require MiCA authorization in the EU and a VASP license or registration in other countries. The product architecture and the licensing roadmap are worth describing before these functions launch.
Common mistakes
- Assuming that a DAO or an offshore LLC is exempt from licensing in the countries where the users live.
- Choosing a country by the "crypto-friendly" label without checking the specific regime.
- Hiding the company's connection to crypto-assets from the bank or the agent.
- Keeping the project treasury in the founders' personal wallets without corporate resolutions and accounting.
Next step
If the project sells a software subscription without handling clients' assets, compare the options in the guide to a SaaS company; custom development is covered in the guide to a company for an IT agency. Preparing for the review by banks and payment services is described in a bank account for a foreign company.
Send us a description of the product, the users' countries, the functions involving client assets and your token plans. Offshora will prepare structure options with a list of licenses, documents for the bank and two-year costs. Submit a request.
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