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Stored Value Facility Setup

Launch your digital wallet or prepaid payment product with the right licence, safeguards and compliance framework.

Discuss Your SVF Setup

    About Our Stored Value Facility Services

    Stored Value Facilities allow customers to keep value electronically and use it later for payments or transfers. Digital wallets and certain prepaid products are common examples.

    Setting up an SVF involves more than building the technology. You need to know how customer funds will enter the facility, where the money will be held and who will have control at each stage. The answers can affect the licence and operating model.

    Vertex Compliance works with founders and established businesses planning to offer SVF services in the UAE. We study the proposed product, payment flow, customer groups and third-party arrangements.

    From there, we help identify the work needed for the regulatory application and business launch. This may include application documents, financial crime controls, customer protection measures and day-to-day operating procedures.

    Stored Value Facility

    What We Review During SVF Setup

    The work is based on the type of facility you plan to offer and how customers will use it.

    1. Business Model and Licence Review

    We start by understanding the product. Will customers load funds into a wallet? Can they pay different merchants? Will they be able to transfer or withdraw the stored value? We then map the movement of money between customers, the SVF operator, banks, merchants and technology partners. This helps clarify which parties are responsible for receiving, holding and transferring funds. The review gives you an early view of the likely regulatory route. It can also uncover problems in the proposed structure before the business reaches the application stage.

    2. Application and Operational Documents

    An SVF application needs to explain how the business will function, not just what the product is meant to do. Vertex Compliance can assist with the business plan, programme of operations and other supporting documents. We also help describe the governance structure, management responsibilities, financial arrangements and use of external providers. Figures and descriptions used across the application should tell the same story. We check the material together so that gaps or conflicting information can be addressed before submission.

    3. Risk, Compliance and Customer Safeguards

    Holding value for customers creates several risks. Fraud, cyber incidents, financial crime and service failures can all affect the customer and the SVF operator. We help develop controls suited to the product. Depending on the setup, this may include customer onboarding, AML/CFT, sanctions screening, transaction monitoring, complaints, data handling and incident management. We also look at arrangements for protecting customer funds and keeping suitable transaction records.

    Our Approach

    Our approach starts with your stored value product and builds a clear path through licensing, application preparation, and launch readiness.

    1
    Understand the Product

    Tell us what you want the product to do and who will use it. We’ll talk through how money gets in, where it goes and how customers get it back. If you have a flowchart or an early plan, bring it along. It gives us something concrete to work from.

    2
    Identify What Is Required

    Once we understand the product, we look at which requirements may apply. Some answers may still be missing, such as who will hold the funds or handle certain parts of the service. We’ll point out those questions early, so you know what to settle before preparing the application.

    3
    Prepare the Setup

    We help develop the application material, policies and procedures included within the agreed scope. Each document is prepared around the actual operating model. We work with your team to make sure the documents describe how the facility will run in practice.

    4
    Check Launch Readiness

    Before you go live, we walk through how the service will run. Can customers add and use their funds as planned? Does everyone know what to do if a payment fails or a customer needs help? We note anything still to be finished so your team can deal with it before launch.

    Who Is Our SVF Service For?

    Digital Wallet Providers
    Prepaid Product Providers
    Payment and FinTech Businesses
    Banks and Established Companies

    Ideal for businesses that want to understand the licensing and compliance work involved before launching an SVF in the UAE.

    Why Choose Vertex Compliance?

    Clear Fund Flow Review

    The way money moves can change the regulatory picture. We map the flow first instead of relying on a short product description. That includes who receives the funds, where they are held and how customers get them back.

    Procedures That Match Your SVF

    Generic policies often fail when compared with the actual system. We prepare documents around the way your facility is intended to work. Your team should be able to recognise its own day-to-day process in what the policies say.

    Risks Identified Before Launch

    We look at what could go wrong when customers add funds, make payments or request a refund. If balances do not match transaction records, or a failed payment leaves a customer unsure where their money is, those issues should be addressed before launch.

    Ongoing Compliance Support

    Once the facility is running, customer balances and transaction activity still need attention. We can help review the procedures your team uses to monitor activity, reconcile records and respond when customers have trouble accessing their funds.

    Meet the Experts

    Sarah Khan
    Vasantha Madan Mohan

    Managing Director

    Sarah Khan
    Sridhar Rajam

    Associate Partner

    Sarah Khan
    Arjun Mohan

    Director – Sales & Marketing

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Not necessarily. Some wallets store value, while others only provide access to a bank account or payment card. The payment flow and product functions need to be checked before deciding how the service may be treated.
    Providing a regulated SVF service in the UAE generally requires approval from the relevant authority. The precise requirement depends on the product, business model and entities involved.
    We normally begin with the product description, customer groups, payment flow, ownership details and planned sources of income. Information about banks, processors and technology providers may also be needed.
    No. Approval is granted by the relevant regulatory authority. Vertex can help prepare the application, identify missing information and respond to questions raised during the review.
    Yes. An early review can be useful because changes are easier to make before the platform and operating processes are finalised.
    There is no fixed period for every application. Timing depends on the business model, licence route, quality of the submitted information and any further questions from the regulator.