Why documentation matters

Here at Relm, we aim to balance the ease and efficiency of our Trade Fluidity ecosystem with regulatory compliance, which is at the heart of everything we do. Nowhere is that more important than in our onboarding process.

We aim to make sure that getting up and running with us is as easy as possible, but we want to keep you (and ourselves) secure and protected too. Not to mention ensure that we’re complying with all relevant regulation—which becomes especially important when transacting, paying, or trading across borders and jurisdictions.

Dun and Bradstreet surveyed compliance decision makers across Europe to understand the impacts of regulatory compliance, and they found that 75% of decision makers reported a significant increase in compliance demands over the last 12 months. Whether that’s staying up to date with ever evolving regulations or simply dealing with the admin that comes from compliance, most business can say it’s a significant demand.

For many businesses, this reflects a broader reality: operating in regulated financial markets now requires higher standards of transparency, verification, and oversight.

At Relm, we view these requirements as a necessary part of building a secure and reliable financial platform. Strong onboarding standards are not about creating friction, they are about protecting clients, safeguarding the integrity of the ecosystem, and ensuring that businesses can transact, pay, and trade with confidence.

We have a structured and planned onboarding journey that balances our rigorous approach to compliance with ease and convenience for our customer. It’s a simple, five-step process:

1.    The business questionnaire

To start us off, we’ll want you to answer a short questionnaire about your business, including what you do and how you intend to use Relm services. These help us understand how we can better support you as a client.

2.    Understanding your business

Next, we’ll dive a little deeper. We’ll need you to provide key bits of information around the company, along with the following documents, forming a Know Your Business (KYB) check. We’ll need to see:

• Your certificate of Incorporation
• A list of current shareholders (Shareholder Register)
• A list of current directors (Director Register)
• Proof of address for the company

This not only helps us verify your entity, but it also allows us to comply with necessary regulatory requirements.  

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3.    Verifying the people within your business

To comply with legislation designed to combat money-laundering and financial crime, need to verify key individuals within your business—known as a Know Your Customer (KYC) check. We’ll need to see identification for:

• Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBOs)
• Directors
• Shareholders with 25% or more ownership

And to prove identity, we’ll ask for the following proof:

• Basic personal information
• Passport or ID
• Proof of address
• Facial verification

These checks are crucial, as in the MEA alone in 2023, regulators levied multi-million dollar fines arising from incomplete disclosures. Also, crypto businesses were the primary targets for deepfake fraud in 2023 accounting for 88% of detected cases.

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4.    Supporting evidence

‍Following submission, additional documents may be required, such as:

• Source of funds (e.g. bank statements)
• Proof of business activity (via additional company documents)
  

Further documents may be required depending on industry or jurisdiction.

5.    Compliance review

You’re done! Sit back and relax while our compliance experts complete our internal review of all your submitted documents and information. We may reach out to you during this period if we need to clarify anything, but otherwise this is a perfect time to start thinking about what you’ll do first once your Relm account is ready.

So, is it just about compliance?

Compliance is a critical part of what we do, but it’s not the whole story. Strong onboarding standards help protect our platform and the clients who use it, creating a secure environment so you can transact and trade with confidence.

The information we collect also helps us understand your business from the outset. That means we can support you more effectively as you use Relm’s services.

Want to know more about our onboarding experience, download our handy guide here <link to onboarding guide>, or talk to us today.

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