It’s time to tell you about a project that has kept most of our team busy over the last few months: 1POINT6 is launching its activities as an Electronic Money Institution (EMI).
This launch marks a milestone in our development. On the one hand, it highlights the relevance of our internal procedures aiming to guarantee our partners the highest level of security, stability and compliance. On the other hand, it paves the way for new financial services to better meet our clients’ needs.
Why was this Electronic Money Institution licence so important to us?
The Electronic Money Institution (EMI) licence is issued by the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (Autorité de contrôle prudentiel et de résolution – ACPR), and will enable us to operate and offer our services throughout the European Economic Area (EEA). Beyond geographical expansion, the key step is regulatory recognition, which strengthens our ability to support our partners' complex payment and flow management needs, both in France and across Europe.
What steps were taken to secure this licence?
We operate in a tightly regulated market. Complying with the rules established by the various authorities is not an option. To secure this licence, we had to follow a strict procedure and provide evidence of our commitments in five key areas:
- Company and the creation of an appropriate legal structure
- Program of activities related to the issuance and management of electronic money (issuance and management of electronic money, payment services, related services, use of distributors and/or agents, conducting business abroad, etc.)
- Business plan and prudential regulations (initial capital, prudential capital requirements, safeguard of funds collected, professional liability insurance)
- Organizational structure and internal control mechanisms put in place (with a focus on combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism)
- Security system procedures and access to sensitive data (procedures for monitoring, handling and following up on incidents, procedures for restricting, recording, monitoring and tracking access to sensitive payment data, and keeping track of such access)
This process was much more than an administrative procedure or forms to fill out for our teams: it was an opportunity to frame our activity and consolidate our internal procedures in order to guarantee the security, stability and compliance of financial flows for our clients.
What will this licence change for our clients?
Securing the EMI licence profoundly changes our scope of action.
With the launch of our Electronic Money Institution (EMI) activities, we deliver regulated payment services — collection, transfers, direct debits, card acquiring — backed by the necessary standards of compliance and security.
We can now issue and manage electronic money, i.e. create monetary value stored in electronic form and representing funds deposited by users.
This opens up new opportunities, particularly for:
- platforms that wish to store user balances or manage prepaid accounts
- complex ecosystems (marketplaces, healthcare and insurance providers, etc.) that need to redistribute funds among multiple stakeholders
Finally, this licence will soon be passported across the entire European market, enabling our clients to operate in all countries of the European Economic Area with the same level of compliance and security.
1POINT6: the leading financial infrastructure in Europe for regulated platforms
Our ambition remains unchanged: to make payment work for all platforms, enabling them to effectively manage their financial flows – even the most complex ones – with complete control and peace of mind.
To achieve this goal, we will focuson:
- Strengthening the team: to support this trajectory, we plan to recruit expert profiles (tech, risk/compliance, product, etc.)
- Expanding into new markets, particularly where financial flow management is complex
- Enhancing our offering with new payment collection, cash flow management and advanced payout features
The launch of our EMI activities reinforces this ambition: to offer a credible European alternative to payment giants, built on transparency, compliance and proximity.
This is a key step in pursuing our mission: to help a new generation of platforms become more free, more sovereign and more ambitious.
