Crypto Company Setup Panama: Regulatory Scope Review

Is This the Right Fit?

Potential fit: blockchain software, non-custodial technology, holding or operating structures.

Enhanced analysis: exchange, over-the-counter (OTC) brokerage, custody, transfers and merchant settlement.

Separate regulated route: securities, investment products, payments or e-money where sectoral rules apply.

Unsuitable expectations: a universal license, unrestricted international access or anonymous ownership.

Which Regulatory Route Applies?

SMV is the securities regulator, SBP the banking supervisor, MICI the commerce ministry and UAF the financial intelligence unit.

Which Virtual Asset Services Need Assessment?

Fiat means government-issued money. These activities require classification before launch.

What Will Gofaizen & Sherle Handle?

• Corporate setup: name check, incorporation, apostilled documents and English translation. You provide ownership records. Operational permissions are separate.
• Legal scoping: fund-flow mapping, regulatory memorandum, commercial-notice assessment and launch conditions. You confirm products and markets. Foreign filings require agreed scope.
• Compliance: AML/KYC policies and beneficial-owner documentation. You supply risk information and implement controls. Daily monitoring remains your responsibility.
• Banking preparation: provider selection and application documents. You explain funding and counterparties. Approval remains the provider’s decision.

What Does the Service Package Cover?

The quote separates professional work, government fees and third-party charges.

What Do We Need From You?

• Preferred name, incorporation forms and existing corporate records.
• Directors’, shareholders’ and ultimate beneficial owners’ identification, addresses and due-diligence forms.
• Business plan, products, client countries and expected volumes.
• Fund-flow and asset-flow maps, funding evidence, custody arrangements and fiat providers.
• Contracts, AML risk data and token documentation where relevant.

What Determines the Timeline?

Document collection → legal assessment → incorporation → applicable filings → operational readiness.

Ownership checks precede incorporation. Product specifications guide policy drafting. Authority processing and bank onboarding run on separate schedules. Timelines follow the agreed scope.

What Regulatory Framework Applies?

Corporate registration, commercial notices and financial supervision serve different purposes. Panama Emprende handles the Aviso de Operación. The Securities Market Law governs activities within SMV’s remit. Law 23 of 2015 establishes duties against money laundering and terrorist financing for covered entities, including payment/e-money issuers supervised by SBP.

The Financial Action Task Force’s VASP concept does not itself create a domestic license. SMV Opinion 04-2025 concerns a specific non-custodial BTC/ETH platform model, not blanket permission for custody, payments or investment products.

What Is the Current Regulatory Status?

What Continues After Setup?

Corporate maintenance
Directors coordinate agent renewals, accounting and annual taxes, maintaining ownership records and filing evidence.

Statutory AML duties
Where covered, compliance staff retain risk assessments, customer checks, sanctions/politically exposed person screening and suspicious-activity reports. Monitoring continues throughout operations, with reviews under applicable rules.

Provider requirements
Management updates and retains bank files when requested, reassessing product changes. These controls can exceed statutory duties.

What Risks Should Be Addressed?

How Can Banking Be Prepared?

How Is Income Taxed?

Panamanian-source taxable corporate income generally faces 25% income tax. Foreign clients alone do not establish foreign-source income. Assess activities, management, counterparties, permanent establishments, transfer pricing, ITBMS (sales tax), dividend tax, annual franchise tax and reporting separately.

Project Law 641 became Law 526 of May 28, 2026, addressing economic substance for certain foreign-source passive income of multinational-group entities from tax year 2027. Executive Decree 32 of September 2, 2026 provides implementing rules. International structures therefore need an individual tax assessment.

Which Alternatives Should Be Compared?

Compare these options based on your services and where your customers are located.

Gofaizen & Sherle can help compare the requirements for your business model. None of these options automatically permits services in every country.