Crypto license in the Cayman Islands

Two doors, and the activity decides

Registration came first, on 31 October 2020, and still covers most virtual asset services: exchange between coins and money, transfers, the issuance of new tokens and financial services tied to a token sale.

Licensing came second, on 1 April 2025, and covers exactly two activities: custody of virtual assets and the operation of a trading platform. A company doing both a licensable and a registrable activity needs only the licence, and the Authority can direct a registered person to apply for one.

The board a licensee has to have

• At least three directors at all times, one of them independent and without a vested interest in the business.
• Prior written approval from the Authority before a senior officer, a trustee or a money laundering compliance officer is appointed.
• An auditor practising in the Islands and approved by the Authority, with audited accounts due six months after the financial year closes.
• Group accounts within three months of the parent's year end, where the applicant belongs to a group.

What the published fees depend on

The schedule reads on two axes: which door you came through and how large the business is. Amounts are set in Cayman Islands dollars.

The two-figure lines are revenue bands, and the schedule names the turnover where each starts. A local company under the Local Companies (Control) Act pays a tenth of the licence figures.

Dates that bind you after approval

• The renewal fee falls due on or before 15 January each year, and late payment adds one twelfth of it for every month or part of a month.
• Three full months unpaid and the registration or licence lapses; for one more month it survives on the fee, the surcharges and ten per cent on top.
• Conditions attached to an approval are met within the period given or, failing that, within six months, or the approval becomes void.
• Any change to the information in the application reaches the Authority within fifteen days and has to be approved.
• Transfer records requested by the Authority are produced through the registered office within forty-eight hours.

What the Authority found when it looked

In November 2025 CIMA published a review of eleven registered providers, five of them holding client assets. The recurring gaps: board composition and succession planning, business continuity, absent internal audit, complaints handling, cybersecurity oversight and, for custodians, missing procedures and independent audits.

That list is the paperwork an application is judged on, and the licensing regime asks for the same at a higher standard. Everything else about the country lives on our Cayman Islands page.

Sources: Virtual Asset (Service Providers) Act (2024 Revision), ss. 5, 9, 10, 11, 31; Virtual Asset (Service Providers) (Amendment) Act, 2024; (Amendment) Regulations, 2025, Schedule 2, SL 19 of 2025; CIMA Regulatory Policy on registration or licensing of VASPs; CIMA desk-based review of registered VASPs, November 2025.