The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has granted in-principal approval to Pasiv Financial to test our product in the market within the ITL "Innovation Testing License" program.
This is a huge milestone for us as a company and we are grateful for the guidance and direction from our account supervisors at the DFSA for working with us to get here.
As a company recognized to provide financial services, we are now officially known as Pasiv Financial Ltd.
Over the course of the last few months, we have been working diligently with the regulatory authority of the DIFC (the DFSA) on our innovative A.I. assisted wealth management platform, the benefits to consumers, and most importantly the business, AML, and operational risks associated with running it.
What is the ITL?
The ITL is a licensed sandbox, which launched in 2017. It enables innovative FinTech firms to test new and innovative financial products, services, and business concepts in or from the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) for a period of up to 12 months. The testing is conducted within a restricted regulatory environment.
The program aims to provide a gateway for innovative financial services market participants whilst maintaining regulatory objectives and supervisory understanding.
Since the sandbox launched, DFSA has received applications from 82 companies, 36 of which have been accepted onto the program. One of the startups that graduated from the ITL program is Sarwa, the region’s first Robo-advisory service.
What do we get out of the ITL?
The ITL provides us with a “safe space” to do our testing as a to-be-regulated firm in the DIFC. Indeed for many fintech, it is the first step towards being a regulated financial services entity in Dubai. The ITL also allows us to establish a relationship with the DFSA and prove that we have the skillset and prerequisites to be a firm in the DIFC that will abide by its laws & regulations.
What happens next?
Over the next few months, we will need to meet the requirements set by the DFSA in their in-principal approval letter to us, and implement controls and procedures as is required of any regulated financial company in the DIFC. The benefit is that we can do all this at a reduced cost and without having to meet all of it at once. Talk about growing pains! Of course, this comes at a price - we won’t be able to open our platform for use by the wider market just yet, we will have to test with a limited number of users and gradually reach a point where we are prepared to transition to a full conventional regulated license.
When do we start testing?
We aim to start testing in Q2 of 2021, but only when the DFSA gives us the green light to onboard customers. In the meantime, we continue to build out and formalize other company operations.
In the meantime, we encourage those interested to signup for our waitlist by requesting an invitation to be a beta tester!
Disclaimer: At the time of this blog post, Pasiv Financial Ltd has only been granted in-principal approval and is yet to be officially regulated by the DFSA or granted permission to start testing its innovative investing platform in a live market.
