How to obtain a VASP licence in Georgia
Georgia now runs one of the clearest regimes in the region for virtual asset service providers. This guide sets out the route as it actually runs, not as the statute describes it.
1. Structure comes before everything
The licence type, the ownership chain and the operating model have to be fixed before any form is filed. The regulator does not assess intention; it assesses what the documents say. A structure assembled to satisfy a shareholder rather than a supervisor will fail on the first round of questions.
In practice this means the licensing team and the corporate team work at the same time. Where they do not, the structure registered in month one has to be unwound in month four.
2. The AML/CFT framework
Policies are not paperwork. They must describe the business that actually exists: the risk matrix, transaction monitoring, reporting lines and internal control. A template downloaded from another jurisdiction is visible from the first paragraph.
Start the search for the AML officer before the application, not after it. In our experience this single item is the most common cause of delay.
3. Filing and the dialogue that follows
Filing begins the process; it does not conclude it. The questions that follow are detailed, and every answer must stay consistent with every document already on the file. Consistency, not eloquence, is what carries an application.
4. After the licence
A licence is the beginning of an obligation, not the end of a project: reporting, policy maintenance, audit and a continuing relationship with the supervisor. Most operators who lose a licence lose it here, not at the application.
Considering a VASP or PSP licence? Book an intake call with the licensing team.
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