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What is a money services business (MSB)?
A money services business (MSB) is a US category under the Bank Secrecy Act for businesses such as currency exchangers, check cashers and money transmitters. FinCEN treats businesses that accept and transmit crypto for others — exchangers, administrators and hosted wallet providers — as money transmitters, and therefore MSBs.
What it means for you
In the US, an MSB must register with FinCEN, run an anti-money-laundering program that includes verifying customer identity, keep records, and file reports such as suspicious activity reports; this is why a platform that holds or sends your crypto asks for identification. A person using an unhosted wallet for their own purchases is not a money transmitter.
How it works
FinCEN's MSB categories are currency dealer or exchanger; check casher; issuer, seller or redeemer of traveler's checks, money orders or stored value; money transmitter; and the US Postal Service. A money transmitter is an MSB regardless of how much it transmits. Registration on FinCEN Form 107 is due within 180 days of starting and is renewed every 24 months. FinCEN's 2019 guidance applies these rules equally to foreign-located crypto transmitters doing business wholly or substantially in the US, even without a physical presence. Banks and firms functionally regulated by the SEC or CFTC fall outside the MSB definition.
Sources: FinCEN: Money services business definition, FinCEN: FIN-2019-G001, regulations applied to business models involving convertible virtual currencies · checked 4 October 2026
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Educational content, not financial advice. Written by hand and checked against the source named above. Something wrong? Tell us and we reply within two business days.