# What do you need to open a business crypto account?

> Five things: the entity's formation documents (articles of organization or incorporation), its EIN, government ID for each beneficial owner holding 25% or more, a short business profile describing activity and expected volume, and business bank account details for settlement. That set clears KYB for most companies — often the same day.

Source: https://anytime-capital.com/learn/business/business-crypto-account-requirements · Topic: Business crypto · Updated: 2026-10-29 · Publisher: Anytime Capital

## Key facts

- **Formation papers:** As filed — Articles of organization or incorporation
- **Tax ID:** EIN — Not needed for a US sole proprietor
- **Ownership test:** 25%+ — Each owner, direct or indirect (FinCEN)
- **Control test:** 1 person — CEO, managing member or similar
- **CDD rule:** Since 2018 — In force May 11, 2018 (31 CFR 1010.230)
- **BOI report:** Foreign only — US companies exempt since March 2025
- **Minimum balance:** None — No funding requirement to open
- **Approval:** Same day — Most complete Anytime Capital files

Business crypto account requirements are nearly identical at every legitimate platform, because they come from federal anti-money-laundering and customer due diligence rules, not house preference. The file proves four things — that the company exists, its tax identity, who owns and controls it, and what it does — plus where dollars should go when it sells.

Here is the list item by item, the exact fields our verification form asks for, how beneficial ownership is traced through holding companies, the extras some entity types are asked for, how this differs from the beneficial ownership report companies used to file with FinCEN, and the mismatches that cause most delays.

## The document list, item by item

Each item answers one due-diligence question about your company. Get each in its final, filed form, and check that the legal name matches across all of them before you submit:

**The five items a business crypto account needs, and what each proves**

| Item | What it proves | Usual form | Mismatch to avoid |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Formation documents | The entity exists as filed with its state | Articles of organization or incorporation | A draft, or a name that differs from the state record |
| EIN confirmation | The entity's federal tax identity | IRS CP 575 notice or 147C letter | An EIN letter for a predecessor entity |
| Beneficial-owner IDs | The people at 25%+ and one controller | Passport or driver's license, current | An ID name that differs from the ownership records |
| Business profile | What the company does and expects to move | A short description and a volume estimate | A vague description that doesn't match the website |
| Business bank details | Where dollar settlements go | Account in the same entity's name | A personal account, or a sister company's |

## Why does every legitimate platform ask for the same file?

Because the list comes from the Bank Secrecy Act. Banks and other covered financial institutions follow FinCEN's customer due diligence rule; money services businesses run anti-money-laundering programs with their own customer verification duties; and business crypto platforms, which work with both, have converged on the same standard. In practice it asks four things of the institution: identify and verify the customer, identify and verify the beneficial owners of a business customer, understand the nature and purpose of the relationship so it can build a risk profile, and monitor the account on an ongoing basis against that profile.

Each item in the file maps to one of those duties. Formation documents and the EIN verify the customer; owner IDs cover beneficial ownership; the business profile — what you sell, your expected monthly volume — is the 'nature and purpose' the institution must understand; and the settlement bank account in the same name keeps the money path explainable for monitoring later. That's why a platform asking for noticeably less than this is a warning sign, not a convenience.

**How the file maps to customer due diligence duties**

| Due diligence duty | Items that satisfy it |
| --- | --- |
| Identify and verify the customer | Formation documents, EIN, legal name and address |
| Identify and verify beneficial owners | IDs for owners at 25%+ and one controlling person |
| Understand nature and purpose | Industry, what the business sells, expected monthly volume |
| Ongoing monitoring | The profile above, plus a settlement account in the same name |

## What does the Anytime Capital verification form ask for?

The form behind the five items is short. It asks for the business's legal name and entity type, its EIN, an optional website, the business address, its industry, a line on what it sells, and its expected monthly volume. It closes with an attestation, in these words: 'I can act for this business, and these details are true and complete. Anytime Capital may check them and ask for documents.'

Entity types cover sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLCs, corporations, S corporations, nonprofits, publicly listed companies, trusts, private foundations and charities, with 'other' for anything else. A sole proprietor doesn't give an EIN — the owner's own identity stands in for it — and a business formed outside the US has none to give. Expected volume is chosen from five bands, from under $10,000 a month to over $10 million: it calibrates monitoring and is not a threshold you have to meet.

- Legal name, exactly as on the state filing
- Entity type, and the EIN for US entities other than sole proprietors
- Business address and an optional website
- Industry, and a line on what the business sells
- Expected monthly volume, chosen from five bands
- The attestation that you can act for the business

## Who counts as a beneficial owner?

The standard comes from FinCEN's customer due diligence rule: each person who owns 25% or more of the company, directly or indirectly, plus one person with significant management control — a CEO, managing member or similar — regardless of ownership. Up to four people can meet the ownership test; exactly one is named for control, and it can be one of the owners.

Indirect ownership is multiplied through each layer. If a holding company owns 60% of your operating company and one person owns half of that holding company, that person owns 30% indirectly and is verified; someone with 40% of the holding company owns 24% indirectly and is not. A clear ownership chart, with percentages at every layer, turns that from correspondence into arithmetic.

**Figure: Tracing indirect ownership through a holding company**

1. **Operating company**: The business applying for the account. (Applicant)
2. **Holding company**: Owns 60% of the operating company. (60%)
3. **Owner A**: Owns 50% of the holding company: 30% indirectly. (Verified)
4. **Owner B**: Owns 40% of the holding company: 24% indirectly. (Under 25%)
5. **Controller**: The CEO or managing member, verified regardless. (Always one)

_Ownership multiplies through each layer: 60% × 50% = 30%, over the 25% line. A chart with percentages at every layer lets the reviewer do this in minutes instead of by email._

## What extra documents do some entity types need?

The five items cover most companies. Some structures are commonly asked for one more document that shows who owns or runs them, because their formation papers don't:

**Extra documents commonly requested by entity type (industry practice, 2026)**

| Entity type | Commonly requested as well | Why |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Sole proprietorship | Owner's ID; a DBA filing if trading under another name | No separate entity to verify |
| Multi-member LLC | Operating agreement or ownership schedule | Articles rarely list members' percentages |
| Partnership | Partnership agreement or list of partners | Shows who holds 25%+ |
| Corporation | Shareholder register or cap table, list of officers | Shows owners and the controller |
| Trust | Trust agreement or certification of trust | Identifies trustees and beneficiaries |
| Nonprofit or foundation | IRS determination letter, list of directors | Confirms status and who controls it |
| US entity with a foreign parent | Parent's formation documents, owners' passports | Traces ownership across borders |

_Typical requests across the industry as of 2026; a reviewer may ask for something else if a file needs it._

## Is this the same as the beneficial ownership report filed with FinCEN?

No, and the two are often confused. The Corporate Transparency Act's beneficial ownership information (BOI) report was a filing companies made directly with FinCEN. On March 21, 2025, FinCEN issued an interim final rule exempting companies formed in the United States from that report; it now applies only to foreign companies registered to do business here.

Account-opening due diligence is a separate obligation that sits on the financial institution — under the 2018 customer due diligence rule for banks and other covered institutions, and under anti-money-laundering programs more broadly — and it did not change. Whether or not your company ever filed a BOI report, the platform still identifies your owners at 25% or more and your controlling person before opening the account.

## The mismatches that stall applications

Almost every delayed file has a consistency problem rather than a missing document: the entity name spelled differently across the state filing and the bank account, an owner's ID showing a different name than the operating agreement, an EIN letter for a predecessor entity, or ownership percentages that add up to more than 100%. Reviewers must resolve every discrepancy, and each one costs a round-trip.

Before submitting, read your own file like an auditor: same entity name everywhere, including punctuation and suffixes like 'LLC' or 'Inc.'; current, unexpired IDs; ownership percentages that sum sensibly; and a business description that matches your website. Ten minutes of self-review routinely saves days.

- Legal name identical on the articles, EIN letter, bank account and application
- IDs current and legible, with names that match the ownership records
- Ownership chart percentages that add up at every layer
- A registered address and an operating address that are both explained
- A business description consistent with what the website says you sell

![Two colleagues at a desk reviewing printed documents beside a computer](https://anytime-capital.com/buisness/business-financial-planning.png)

_Reading the file like a reviewer before you submit — one name everywhere, current IDs, percentages that add up — removes most of the questions that would otherwise come back._

## What you don't need

No business plan, no financial statements, no minimum balance or funding requirement, no licenses (unless your business is itself a regulated money business), and no crypto experience. A company formed last week is fine; operating history isn't a requirement. KYB verifies who you are, not whether your treasury strategy is wise. Platforms asking for dramatically more than the list above are either serving a different risk tier or padding their process.

That changes only for specific activity. Very large transactions can bring source-of-funds questions, cash transactions carry their own reporting, and a business that is itself a money transmitter or exchange is asked about its licenses. Those are follow-ups for particular cases, not part of the standard file.

## Frequently asked questions

### Do all owners need to provide ID, or just big ones?

Only beneficial owners at 25% or more, plus one controlling officer. A company with many small shareholders typically verifies just its executives.

### Our entity is brand new — is that a problem?

No. A company formed last week can open an account this week; formation documents and an EIN are the requirement, not operating history.

### Can a foreign-owned US entity open an account?

Often yes — the US entity applies, and foreign beneficial owners provide passport-grade ID. Expect the review to take a few days rather than one, because ownership is traced across borders.

### Is there a minimum deposit or volume requirement?

Not for opening. Expected volume in your profile calibrates monitoring; it isn't a threshold you must clear, and there's no funding requirement to open an Anytime Capital business account.

### What if an owner is a company rather than a person?

Verification looks through it to the people behind it. Provide the owning company's formation documents and an ownership chart, and anyone who reaches 25% indirectly is verified.

### Do we need to send the operating agreement?

Not always, but it's the most common extra request for multi-member LLCs, because articles of organization rarely show members' percentages. Having it ready avoids a round-trip.

### Do we have to re-verify later?

Tell the platform when ownership, control or the business changes materially. Platforms also refresh due diligence periodically, as their compliance programs require — usually a short update, not a new application.

## Related

- [How long does approval take?](https://anytime-capital.com/learn/business/how-long-does-a-business-crypto-account-take)
- [Can an LLC buy crypto?](https://anytime-capital.com/learn/business/can-an-llc-buy-crypto)
- [What makes an account crypto-friendly?](https://anytime-capital.com/learn/business/crypto-friendly-business-bank-account)
- [Open a crypto business account](https://anytime-capital.com/business/crypto/business-account)

**Have the list? Apply today..** Submit the five items to Anytime Capital online in minutes. Most complete applications are approved the same day, and there's no minimum balance or funding requirement to open. https://anytime-capital.com/business/get-started

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