HMRC Registration

Our registration number with HMRC, as a Money Service Business, is 12358614. We comply with the Fifth Money Laundering Directive for compliance as a money transfer business, and are committed to ensuring that all transactions processed by Currency Index are compliant with the Directive as well as all other relevant financial crime legislation.

Personal Clients

For UK residents we will run an online ID check to verify your identity. This is free of charge and does not constitute a credit check. Usually if you have UK residential status and are on the electoral roll, this will be all that is required in order to satisfy identification requirements. If the check does not verify your identity, we will require a copy of a photographic ID, such as passport or driving licence, and recent proof of address, such as a utility bill.

For international residents and some UK cases (for example if you have recently moved house) - we may either need to ask you to complete an ID verification process using your smartphone, or ask for copies of identity such as a passport or utility bill, depending on the circumstances.

Please note in the case of receiving funds from joint bank accounts, we will need the same information for both parties on the account. It is therefore easiest to add your partner or spouse to your account on registration with us, to avoid potential delays if you will be settling your currency transaction from a joint bank accounts.

We do NOT accept cash under any circumstances, and generally we will NOT accept payments from your business bank account or an unrelated third party, to settle a personal transaction, unless there is a legitimate purpose.

We will also need to verify the nature of your transaction, for example if you are paying a third party for goods or services; our compliance team can usually complete this process in-house but on occasion we may need to ask for supporting documentation from you.

Finally we may also need to ask for evidence of the source of your funds or income, to comply with money laundering legislation.

Your account manager will be able to advise you of what is required before we can transmit funds on your behalf. We will only ask for specific information that is necessary to satisfy our internal procedures, which are compliant with our internal risk assessment and our regulatory obligations, and thank you for your understanding, as this is common practice with all reputable financial service providers.

Personal Currency Services

Business Clients

Where funds are sent to Currency Index from a business bank account, we will perform a company check and ask for individual ID verification for all shareholders who control over 25% of the business sending us funds. This is an HMRC requirement and a service provided by Currency Index without charge. Shareholders will be subject to the same standards of verification as personal accounts above.

We will also ask for details of company Directors authorised to instruct us in sending payments. It is important that Currency Index is satisfied that a person acting on behalf of a corporate client has authority to do so. Directors will need to provide written consent where the primary contact is not a Director of the company.

We will also need to verify the nature of your transaction, for example if you are paying a third party for goods or services; our compliance team can usually complete this process in-house but on occasion we may need to ask for supporting documentation from you such as an invoice, to validate the payment.

Your account manager will be able to advise you of what is required before we can transmit funds on your behalf.

We do NOT accept cash under any circumstances; for payments from other entities than the business that registers as a client with us, we need to verify a legitimate business reason for the transaction and will carry out further due diligence to satisfy our Compliance Policy, before making payments on a client's behalf.

Business Currency Services

Compliance for money transfers - Common Questions

Can I send payments to a third party?

Yes, although we will need to verify that the third party is a legitimate beneficiary; eg a registered lawyer for a property purchase, or a business that exists and provides the services you are paying them for. This is usually relatively straightforward.

Can I pay you from a third party account?

Sometimes. If you are invoicing a customer, or sending payment to us from a partner or family member, we can usually accommodate this with some simple additional paperwork or details from you. However please check with us before making payment from a third party to Currency Index, to avoid any potential delays or returning of the funds. We do not accept payments from business bank accounts, to settle transactions for personal clients.

Can I pay you by cheque?

Yes, but you need to post your sterling cheque to our office, rather than pay it in at a branch of our bank. Once received we will allow 7 working days for clearance before we send out your purchased currency.

In addition we can now accept Euro cheques drawn on French banks; please contact us for more information.

Does your identity check leave a footprint on my credit score?

Our electronic identity checks are provided by Experian and Creditsafe. They leave a 'soft' mark on your credit rating, which should not affect your credit score, and are a common way to verify identity. They are not a credit check.

Contact us

You can contact the team at Currency Index, for a quote or a question around compliance for money transfers and payments, using this form. We will get back in touch during business hours (Mon-Thu 9-5.30, Fri 9-5, UK time).

  • Registered Data Controllers - we don't pass your details to anyone else
  • UK staffing, regulation and banking
  • Established 2008
  • Personal service: dedicated account manager for every client

Sanctions, PEPs and SIPs

Compliance for money transfer businesses requires us to also check all payments against live Sanctions lists in the UK and abroad, as well as international and UK PEP (Politically Exposed Persons) lists and other special interest lists such as financial crime and related entities. In the case of any matches, we will not make payment on your behalf until we have verified that it is legally and ethically permissible to do so, and we will be unable to provide further detail on any payment delays, in accordance with current legislation and guidance.

We will not process any payments where we have grounds to suspect money laundering, terrorist financing or fraud, or for certain types of payment or industry (such as for crypto currency or unregulated investments) or to certain destination countries. Please contact us for our current policy to check if we are able to make your payments.