Fast from afar: a business asked to open an account without visiting a bank

The business asked the Central Bank to open bank accounts without coming to the office. If the client has already been identified in another bank, players should exchange information and allow online service. Such an initiative is contained in a letter from Opora Russia to the regulator (Izvestia has it). Financial organizations have confirmed that the functionality is in demand, and market players will be ready to launch it if the Bank of Russia provides the legal opportunity. Now this is relevant against the background of the rapid development of SMEs, which often open businesses in small towns, and there are usually few branches for entrepreneurs and they work only in large cities.

How to open a business account without visiting the office

In Russia, it is necessary to introduce a mechanism for "reusing identification". That is, to allow banks to open accounts for legal entities and sole proprietors remotely, while verifying the accuracy of information about the company through other credit institutions if the client already has an account there. Such a proposal is contained in a letter from the Opora Russia small business association to the Central Bank (Izvestia has the document). Currently, according to the requirements of the "anti-money laundering" legislation, the client must personally visit the bank's office.

The mechanism of "reusing identification" has already been tested on individuals, the letter clarifies. It is provided for banks connected to financial platforms (for example, Financial Services), which can verify identity independently or with the help of third-party credit institutions. At the same time, Finuslugi is aimed at working with individuals.

"Thus, the "transfer" of identification from one bank to another is allowed with a "layer" in the form of a financial platform," but is prohibited "directly," the document of the business association emphasizes.

The Central Bank told Izvestia that Opora Russia's proposals require analysis, including with the involvement of Rosfinmonitoring, and then the regulators' position will be sent to business representatives. The Bank of Russia believes that the current "anti-money laundering legislation" already provides for many exceptions that allow remote identification.

For example, if an individual, a representative of a legal entity, acts as a client of the same bank without a power of attorney and was identified in person or using biometric data, he can open a business account remotely, Rosfinmonitoring reminded Izvestia. In addition, this is possible when a legal entity that has an account with a credit institution belonging to a banking group comes to another member of the same group for servicing.

Finally, the Federal Tax Service's "Start a Business Online" experiment is currently in operation, which makes it possible to issue an electronic signature and simultaneously open primary bank accounts without personal presence, Rosfinmonitoring added.

In general, financial intelligence shares the market's position on how important it is to increase the availability of financial services, but they note that it is imperative to maintain an appropriate level of security and comply with the requirements of international anti—money laundering standards.

Why does a business need to open accounts online

Despite the development of the financial market in Russia, small and medium-sized businesses still face barriers when interacting with small financial organizations, the document says. The main problems are related to the fact that production and trading platforms are located far from bank offices, there are few regional branches, and financial delivery services are underdeveloped.

At the same time, among small and medium—sized financial organizations, a significant proportion are neobanks, organizations that rely on innovative approaches and information technologies. By increasing efficiency, they are ready to offer competitive service conditions, including those specifically adapted for SMEs, the letter adds. However, they usually have very few branches, and they are located only in large cities.

— The problem of physical accessibility of bank offices does exist. The most pressing issue is in the regions of Siberia and the Far East due to the large proportion of remote and hard—to-reach settlements," confirmed Dmitry Zemlyansky, director of the Center for Spatial Analysis and Regional Diagnostics at the IPEI Presidential Academy.

In some cases, the distance to the bank's office may exceed 50 km, and the cost of traveling there to open an account for a small business (especially a microenterprise) will be very significant, he concluded.

The proposals of Opora Russia are supported by the SME Corporation, as well as by the largest banks. At the same time, it is important that financial organizations themselves are ready for this, the SME Corporation clarified.

— Banks have been ready technologically for a long time. Therefore, we are very much waiting for the legislation to catch up with the capabilities of financial institutions and simplify entry for new customers. In an era of catastrophic time constraints, this will be in great demand by entrepreneurs," said Andrey Kozlovsky, Head of the BBB Bank's Product Department.

If the mechanism is properly adjusted, it will be possible to create a trusted data exchange environment between banks, and then this will be a good opportunity to support the business from the financial regulator, said Svetlana Yakovleva, Executive Vice President of Gazprombank.

The development of open banking, which allows players to exchange information, introduces new opportunities for servicing SME customers, agrees Anna Zaitsevskaya, the owner of MTS Bank's Cash Settlement Service product. Currently, credit institutions spend a lot of resources on identification.

The initiative itself can be implemented only taking into account the regulator's development of rules for working in a competitive environment, as well as strengthening trusting relationships in the professional community, Anna Zaitsevskaya added.

At the same time, it is important to comply with the necessary standards of security and customer protection, VTB concluded. To prevent a situation where multiple accounts are opened online for a business that has nothing to do with a person.