Nasdaq-listed fintech Payoneer (Nasdaq: PAYO) has secured its presence in the United Kingdom by obtaining an electronic money license (EMI) from the country's financial market supervisor, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA ). The license was granted to the locally formed subsidiary, Payoneer Payment Services UK Ltd.

Payoneer Acquires UK's EMI License

An E-money license allows companies to provide payment services and other financial products in the UK. These companies can accept customers' money and offer services related to electronic money. However, they cannot manage customers' funds, unlike banks.

It is a popular license as many high-flying fintech startups, like Revolut and Wise, operate with it. Many companies also gain the coveted license by acquiring existing EMI fintech.

Securing UK Presence after Brexit

Payoneer enables small businesses and freelancers to receive cross-border payments. The company was founded in 2005 and had more than 5 million customers, as seen on its website.

Apart from the latest FCA license, the payments company already holds regulatory approvals in the United States, Ireland, Hong Kong, Japan, Australia, and India. The necessity of the UK license came following the country's exit from the larger European Union bloc, where companies can passport licenses for cross-border operations.

Until now, the company was operating in the UK with its EU license, but the UK authorities will soon close these temporary permissions.

"The FCA traditionally sets the tone of financial regulation globally, and, therefore, we are extremely proud to be receiving our e-money license in the UK," said James Allum, the CEO at Payoneer Payment Services UK and SVP Europe at Payoneer.

"We're excited to be able to continue serving our customers in the UK and with our relationship with the FCA. Our customers in the UK now have confidence in Payoneer's consistent ability to provide regulated financial services of the highest standard."

Payoneer went public in mid-2021 after closing a reverse merger with a blank-check company launched by fintech entrepreneur Betsy Cohen. The deal was valued at about $3.3 billion.

However, the stock market performance of the company remained dull. Since listing, the value of Payoneer stocks plummeted by more than 43 percent but showed significant growth over the past year.

In the third quarter of 2022, the Nasdaq-listed company generated $158.9 million in revenue, which was 30 percent higher year-over-year. Furthermore, the figure was higher than the previous four consecutive quarters. However, the company ended the quarter with a net loss of $26.5 million.