Angola has revised requirements and procedures for the authorization to set up Non-Banking Financial Institutions linked to currency and credit, according to official legal database Legis-PALOP+TL.
As of May 14, 2022, the establishment in Angola of Exchange Houses, Electronic Money Institutions, Financial Assignment Companies, Credit Guarantee Companies, Financial Leasing Companies, Money Market Mediation Companies or Exchanges, Payment Systems Operators, Clearing Houses and Payment Service Providers depend on authorization to be granted by the National Bank of Angola (BNA), upon request for authorization to set up Non-Banking Financial Institutions instructed with specific documentation, as well as the following information:
⦁ Business plan, corporate governance and operating model;
⦁ Identification and other relevant information of the partners or shareholders; and
⦁ Identification and other relevant information of corporate bodies and directors with relevant management functions, including their suitability, availability and professional experience.
In the specific case of Payment Service Providers, the business plan must specify the volume of transactions to be carried out, with a view to determining the share capital, qualified as:
⦁ Main — when the total value of the transactions, foreseen for the first 12 months exceeds 5 billion Kwanzas (approximately USD 12 million);
⦁ Standard Class 1 — when the total value of the transactions, foreseen for the first 12 months does not exceed 5 billion Kwanzas (approximately USD 12 million); and
⦁ Standard Class 2 — when the total value of the transactions, foreseen for the first 12 months does not exceed 2 billion Kwanzas (approximately USD 5 million).
All Non-Banking Financial Institutions based in Angola must comply with the following requirements:
⦁ To have as its exclusive object the exercise of the legally permitted activity;
⦁ Adopt the form of a legally permitted company;
⦁ Have share capital not less than the regulatory minimum in accordance with BNA rules;
⦁ Identify the partners or shareholders and the ultimate beneficial owners;
⦁ Demonstrate the economic and financial capacity of the partners or shareholders;
⦁ Present solid provisions in terms of corporate governance of the company, including a clear organizational structure, with well-defined, transparent and coherent lines of responsibility;
⦁ Organize effective processes for the identification, management, control and communication of risks to which it is or may be exposed;
⦁ Have adequate internal control mechanisms, including sound administrative and accounting procedures;
⦁ Have remuneration policies and practices that promote and are consistent with sound and prudent risk management;
⦁ Have in the management and supervisory bodies members whose suitability, professional qualification, independence and availability demonstrate, either individually or at the level of the bodies as a whole, guarantees of sound and prudent management of the Financial Institution; and
⦁ The ultimate beneficial owners of qualifying holdings must be suitable and competent.
Legal Update/ Angola: Credit to the Economy by commercial banks
Non-banking Microfinance Financial Institutions, Credit Cooperative Societies, Microcredit Societies and Savings and Loan Societies are exempt from complying with the above requirements.
In relation to foreign or non-resident natural or legal persons, proof of the veracity of the information provided must be made by means of any document, means or diligence considered valid, suitable and sufficient, namely, through an equivalent document issued by a competent entity of the country of origin. All documents intended to complete the authorization request written in a foreign language must be translated into Portuguese and duly certified.
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