How to check the FINTRAC MSB registry

What is the FINTRAC MSB registry?

The FINTRAC MSB registry is the public list of money services businesses registered with FINTRAC. Anyone can search it online for free. It's the quickest way to check a remittance company or crypto business before you pay it or sign a contract.

FINTRAC is the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada, the agency that enforces Canada's anti-money laundering law. Under that law, a money services business must register with FINTRAC before it operates in Canada.

Payment providers use it too, and so do MSBs checking their own agents and partners. See how our payments for money service businesses work.

Which businesses are on the registry?

Every registered money services business (MSB) with a place of business in Canada is on it. That covers currency exchange dealers, money transfer and remittance companies, and virtual currency dealers like exchanges and Bitcoin ATMs.

It also covers money order issuers, crowdfunding platforms, armoured car services, cheque cashers and private ATM acquirers. Our FINTRAC MSB registration guide explains who has to register.

A foreign money services business has no place of business in Canada. It directs these services at people and businesses here, and provides them here. It must register too. Its entry carries a foreign MSB marker.

Banks and credit unions are a different kind of reporting entity, so you won't find them on this registry.

How do I search the FINTRAC MSB registry?

1. Open the registryGo to FINTRAC's money services businesses registry. It's free and needs no account.
2. Search by name or numberType the business's legal name, operating name or MSB registration number. FINTRAC says all fields are searchable, so a city or a website address can find a business too.
3. Pick the right entryCompare the names and the business address with what the business told you. Many MSBs trade under a name that's different from their legal one.
4. Read the status, services and datesCheck that the status says Registered, that the services cover what the business does and that the expiry date is still ahead.
5. Keep a recordNote the date you checked and save the entry's details with your files. Then you can show what you saw, and when.

To check many businesses at once, use FINTRAC's download instead. Checking in bulk is explained below.

FINTRAC says it updates the registry monthly. A registration, renewal or revocation from the last few weeks may not show yet.

What does a registry entry show?

Every entry shows the same fields. Here's what each one tells you, and what to check.

What do the registration statuses mean?

Read the status first. FINTRAC uses four.

A business whose registration is denied or revoked can ask FINTRAC for a review within 30 days. FINTRAC also keeps a separate list of MSBs with revoked registration.

If the status says anything other than Registered, ask the business why before you go further.

What if a business isn't on the registry?

Don't assume the worst straight away. Try these first:

• Search again with the legal name, the operating name and the registration number. Spelling and punctuation vary.
• Look at FINTRAC's list of MSBs with revoked registration.
• Ask the business for its registration number and the exact legal name it registered under.
• Ask whether it needs to register at all. Banks and credit unions move money, but they aren't MSBs.

If a business offers money services and still isn't registered, treat that as a red flag. FINTRAC says operating an unregistered money services business is a violation and an offence under the Act. You can send FINTRAC voluntary information about it, anonymously if you prefer.

What can't the registry tell you?

A registry entry shows that a business met the legal requirements to register. FINTRAC says registration doesn't mean it endorses or licenses the business, and it doesn't issue licences or certificates.

So the registry can't tell you how well a business runs its compliance program or looks after customers' money. It doesn't show provincial licences either.

Take care with anyone who says they're FINTRAC licensed, approved or certified. The accurate wording is "registered with FINTRAC as a money services business". We describe ourselves the same way: registered with FINTRAC as a money services business (C100000702).

For an agent or partner you'll rely on, ask more. Who is their compliance officer? When was their last effectiveness review? How do they verify their clients?

Is the Bank of Canada PSP registry the same thing?

No. It's a second, separate registry. Under the Retail Payment Activities Act (RPAA), payment service providers register with the Bank of Canada. The Bank keeps its own public registry of them.

A payment company can appear on both. FINTRAC registration is about anti-money laundering rules. Bank of Canada registration is about the RPAA's rules for payment service providers, such as safeguarding their users' funds.

The Bank of Canada says it doesn't endorse or license registered PSPs either. We're on both lists: FINTRAC MSB C100000702 and the Bank of Canada PSP registry.

How do I check many businesses at once?

With many agents, partners or MSB clients, check them all at once from FINTRAC's download.

1. Download the registryFINTRAC publishes the whole registry as an XLS or CSV file on the registry page.
2. Match on the registration numberNames vary in spelling and punctuation. Numbers don't, so ask each business for its number and match on that.
3. Flag status and servicesMark every entry that isn't Registered, and every one whose services don't cover the work it does for you.
4. Note the expiry datesPut each expiry date in your calendar, and ask for proof of renewal before it passes.
5. Check again each monthFINTRAC updates the registry monthly. Save each file you check against, with the date.

If you run an MSB, payment providers and partners check your entry the same way, so keep it current. Our registration guide covers renewals and the 30-day rules.