Distinguish incorporation, financial permission, representatives and warnings. A seven-field worksheet connects official records to the actual contracting entity.
A licence check should produce a reproducible answer about the proposed account, not a general “regulated” badge. Start with the full company name in the client agreement, your residence, client category, product and the website used to open the account. Save the agreement version before comparing it with a register.
The result may be matched evidence, a conflict, or an unresolved question. None is a prediction of profitability. Do not fund an account merely to obtain documents needed for this check; request the relevant terms first.
| Record type | What to inspect | Mistake to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Company or business-name registration | Legal name, number and corporate status | Treating incorporation as permission for financial services |
| Financial licence or authorisation | Named holder, current status, activities and restrictions | Assuming every product advertised by the group is covered |
| Representative or agent record | Principal, appointment scope and relevant dates | Treating an appointment number as the representative's own unrestricted licence |
| Warning or enforcement notice | Exact entity, domain, action and date | Extending a notice to every similar brand name |
Number formats alone are not enough. Record the issuing body and record type beside the number. A corporate registration number and a financial licence reference can both be genuine while answering different questions.
For the UK, the FCA authorisation guide explains Firm Checker and the Financial Services Register. Use the appropriate tool for current permissions or historical records.
For Australia, ASIC's professional-register search distinguishes professional record categories, including licence holders and representatives. Select the relevant category rather than relying on a business-name match.
These are examples, not a list of every jurisdiction. Elsewhere, locate the relevant regulator's official website and its own search instructions. Sponsored results, an attached certificate and a link supplied by the salesperson are not independent confirmation of an official entry point. Do not assume identical fields or terminology across registers.
| Field | Evidence from the proposed account | Evidence from the official source or independent confirmation |
|---|---|---|
| Entity | Full contracting name, including legal suffix | Exact name and any documented former names |
| Reference | Number and claimed issuing authority | Number type and matching record |
| Status | Claimed permission at onboarding | Current status plus relevant historical date if checking an older transaction |
| Scope | Product, activity and client category | Permitted activity, limitations and any unresolved coverage question |
| Contact | Host, email and phone supplied | Official contact or clarification through an independently verified route |
| Account relationship | Entity in the agreement and recipient instructions | Explanation of any group company or collection relationship |
| Evidence date | Agreement version and date received | Query time, source URL and saved copy filename |
Add a status column of your own: consistent, conflicting or not established. If a register omits a website, write “not displayed” and identify the next question. Do not invent a domain or classify the firm as fraudulent from that blank alone. Keep the register copy and a company's explanation separately labelled.
Suppose a fictional brand presents a permission for “Example Financial Ltd,” while your agreement names “Example International Ltd.” The similar names do not establish one entity. Search each exact name and reference separately. If the first record matches but the second is unresolved, the result is not “account verified.” It is “record for the first entity found; permission for the proposed contracting entity not established.”
If the company says one is an appointed representative, ask for the principal and appointment scope. If it says the entity changed, ask for the dated change documentation and which agreement now governs the account. An old valid record does not establish today's status, and today's status does not by itself settle the status on the date of an earlier transaction.
The example contains invented names and is not an allegation against a real business. Its purpose is to show exactly which missing link prevents a conclusion, rather than replacing evidence with a broad rating.
My proposed agreement names [entity] for [product] and [client category], while the supplied reference identifies [other record]. Please identify the applicable authorisation or appointment, its scope and the official record. Please confirm whether [exact host] belongs to the contracting entity through an independently verifiable contact route.
Record who replied, when and in what capacity. If the response only repeats the group brand, it has not resolved the entity question. If the official body or genuine entity cannot clarify a material conflict, keep it unresolved and postpone unverified funding. Do not use the disputed contact details as the only way to authenticate themselves.
Successful matching establishes particular evidence, not a guarantee against business failure, market loss, impersonation or a disputed payment. Client-money treatment, negative balance protection, compensation eligibility and complaint jurisdiction require separate checks. A licence list does not automatically transfer the strongest group's protections to your contract.
Save full originals privately and redact account identifiers and personal documents before public sharing. Do not describe a salesperson's statement as a regulator's confirmation. For website conflicts use the clone-domain worksheet; for broader account terms use the broker-selection checklist.
No result: is the company fake? Not established. Recheck name, record category, authority and scope, then seek official clarification. Do not turn a search failure into a verdict.
Does a licence prove compensation eligibility? No. Eligibility and the type of claim must be assessed under the relevant scheme and account circumstances.
Can I rely on an old screenshot? It may support a historical record but not current status. Preserve its date and check the relevant time period separately.
What should the final note say? State the entity, service, sources and unresolved fields precisely. “These identifiers matched on this date” is more accurate than “safe broker.” If a dispute already exists, organise documents with the complaint evidence template.
A matching licence does not tell you whether an order buys a share interest or creates a price-difference contract. If the app offers both, use the fractional shares versus CFDs ownership checklist to verify the agreement, quantity, custody records and exit route before placing the order.