Multiple U.S. states have signed on to an agreement that standardizes key elements of the licensing process for money transmitters and money service businesses.
The agreement calls for one state regulatory department to review common licensing requirements, including the business plan; background checks; financial information and compliance with the anti-money laundering provisions of the federal Bank Secrecy Act. The state then communicates the review with all other participating states who have agreed to accept the findings. Then licenses follow those reviews.
Currently, 23 states have signed on to the agreement, including California, Connecticut, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and Wyoming.
“The collaboration among these 23 states has significantly streamlined the licensing process for participating companies. We look forward to more states joining. This is a new era in the state system where we are not only coordinating but actively relying on our fellow regulators to safely bring new financial service products to our citizens,” Charlie Clark, director of the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions, said.
The multistate licensing initiative is part of Vision 2020, an initiative launched by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors.