Application for License:

1. A crowdfunding company shall apply to the Central Bank for a licence in the form prescribed by the Central Bank’s licensing manual.
    
2. The application and all supporting documents shall be in either Arabic or English. Documents in any other language shall be accompanied by a certified English or Arabic translation. Any financial figures should be presented in UAE Dirham (AED).
    

Category:

3. The crowdfunding company shall stipulate which Category of license it is applying for and provide reasoning for such a decision, which includes how that Category fits into its wider strategy.
    
4. The crowdfunding company shall provide details of any plans it may have to move to a different Category license over time.
    

Core Information:

5. The core information required as part of an initial application for an LCAs license is set out in further detail in Appendix 1 and in the Central Bank’s Licensing manual which will be provided to the applicant on request.
    
6. A CFP that is regulated in another jurisdiction and is applying for a license to set-up a subsidiary in the UAE shall obtain a No-Objection Letter from its home-jurisdiction regulator that is addressed to the Central Bank by its home regulator.
    
7. The Central Bank as a condition of the license may require the crowdfunding company to appoint a skilled person(s) to carry out a 3^rd party assessment of any aspect of the company’s proposed business model/systems. The findings and reports of the 3^rd party assessment will form part of the core licensing information required to be submitted by an applicant to the Central Bank.
    
8. The Central Bank shall communicate its decision considering the merits of the application and:
    
   1. Grant the licence with or without conditions and limitations; or
       
   2. Reject the application, stating the reasons for rejecting the application
       
9. Drafts may be accepted for certain documents required for the application but their content may not be changed substantially once pre-approval is provided.
    

Validity of License:

10. The licence shall be valid for a period of twelve (12) months and shall renew subject to Central Bank’s approval.
     
11. A crowdfunding company shall pay the relevant application fee at the time of submitting its application to the Central Bank and shall also annually pay a license fee to the Central Bank when it renews its licence.
     

Cancellation and Modification of License:

12. The Central Bank may cancel or modify a licence if the crowdfunding company:
     
    1. Has not commenced to operate the business within one (1) year of the date Central Bank granting the LCAs licence;
        
    2. Ceases to operate for a period exceeding six (6) months;
        
    3. Failed to fulfil its obligations under this regulation; or
        
    4. Posed undue risk to consumers or the financial system.
        
13. The Central Bank will give a notice, including its reasons, to a crowdfunding company within twenty (20) days of implementing the action.
     
14. Where a crowdfunding company voluntarily submits a request to surrender its licence, the Central Bank will evaluate and consider such a request, including the adequacy of arrangements made by the crowdfunding company for an orderly wind down and/or otherwise impose such conditions as it deems fit to ensure that continuing obligations are satisfactorily addressed.
     

Ongoing Obligations:

15. A crowdfunding company shall ensure criteria set out in this Article are met on an ongoing basis and comply with any conditions or limitations set forth on an ongoing basis.
     
16. The Central Bank may undertake site inspections or instruct crowdfunding companies to conduct independent assessments at periodic intervals confirming that the criteria and conditions under this Article are being satisfied on an ongoing basis.
     

Bank Guarantee:

17. Should the application be approved, crowdfunding companies must undertake to provide a bank guarantee drawn in favour of the Central Bank and issued by a locally incorporated UAE bank of value equal to the required paid-up capital as per Article 4.
     

Further Information:

18. The Central Bank may seek any additional information from a crowdfunding company as it deems necessary throughout the application process.