How to Open Corporate Bank Accounts in Latvia Remotely

Corporate bank accounts in Latvia offer many benefits to their holders, including international corporate clients. 

This article is a brief guide for companies seeking professional assistance in opening their bank accounts with one of the most reliable European banks in Latvia. It provides access to classic banking and innovative financial services in the EU and beyond. The uniqueness of the offer is the opportunity to open accounts with this bank remotely. 

The bank which we recommend in Latvia for remote opening of a corporate account

Banks in Latvia are among the most resilient ones in Europe, and their services are available to clients from different parts of the world, including Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, and other CIS countries. 

To open a corporate account with the Latvian bank, applicants will have to follow a certain procedure and collect the required documents. Moreover, our experts will help make it even easier for you. For further information, please e-mail us your questions and requests.

We recommend opening corporate accounts with a highly reputable in Europe Latvian commercial bank which was launched in 1992 and has grown into one of the largest Baltic banking institutions since then. It has developed a network of regional offices around the world, including China. It maintains cooperation with partners in all European Union countries and OECD. It serves large and medium-sized businesses, including companies with beneficiaries from the CIS countries. It supports many national events and charity projects in medicine, education, culture, and sports. The Bank finances ambitious commercial projects in housing and business-related real estate development, manufacturing, transport, fintech startups, and many other promising fields.

Important: When starting cooperation with a Latvian bank, you should take into account that this is a reputable European financial institution complying with the EU standards and provisions of the financial regulators at the national level. Therefore, clients should confirm that they have a real (not nominal) office, staff, as well as real management from the country of incorporation. As each company has its interests, plans, and nuances, we invite you to discuss your specific questions individually with our professional experts. 

Advantages of holders of corporate bank accounts in Latvia

One of the advantages of working with the recommended Latvian bank is its participation in the Deposit Guarantee Fund (DGF) system. This guarantee scheme is also applicable to corporate funds of legal entities, including foreign ones. The coverage amount – 100 000 EUR, applies to account balances and deposits. 

This bank in Latvia actively cooperates with the German deposit platform ZINSPILOT. Such cooperation gives unlimited access to the savings deposit market of this country. It also participates in other international financial projects. Therefore, it offers its clients the best service terms at very reasonable rates. 

It actively credits business, including in the following areas: fintech, real estate development, logistics, manufacturing. 

Customers of Latvian bank enjoy access to a full range of classic services:

• current account maintenance
• SEPA/SWIFT payments
• crediting
• hedging and investing
• salary and card projects. 

Other main advantages that clients of the Latvian bank are entitled to:

• full information about cooperation terms and products of the bank is available on the website in 6 languages
• convenient internet and mobile banking solutions
• round-the-clock online help desk and support
• comprehensive remote consultations
• personal advisor, who is appointed at the time of the account opening. 

Important: A corporate account can be opened remotely, without the need to visit the bank office. Moreover, the flexible customer-oriented approach is guaranteed to all clients. 

Restrictions to be aware of when applying for corporate bank accounts in Latvia

Like all financial institutions in the European Union, this Latvian bank is subject to the national legal provisions and EU regulations. Therefore it follows the standard customer compliance requirements and restrictions stipulated to all European banks as part of the anti-money laundering and anti-terrorism measures in Europe.

Restrictions by activity type

The recommended bank of Latvia does not impose any special restrictions on the type of customer activity. One of the main conditions is that the business must be real, not nominal. Therefore, foreign companies will need to provide information about the office and staff in the country of incorporation. 

The bank willingly cooperates with clients engaged in a variety of activities, including:

• private aviation
• yachting
• fintech-startups
• shipping
• others.

Restrictions by the place of incorporation

All applicants need to provide a formal statement of their company’s location and operation in the country of incorporation. And if the company has any business relations in Latvia, the opening of an account will be agreed in a faster and simpler way.  

More meticulous attention (according to the KYC provisions) will be paid to companies from the United States and countries that appear on the sanctions list. 

Terms of remote opening of a corporate account with the recommended bank in Latvia

To open a corporate account and start using it, you will need to deposit in it the required sum within 90 days from the date of its opening.

The minimum balance requirements for companies registered in different jurisdictions are slightly different:

– companies registered in the Baltic states ( Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) need to maintain a minimum account balance of 10 000 EUR by the end of each day

– for companies from other jurisdictions the required deposit balance at the end of the business day is 100 000 EUR.

Other terms and conditions of cooperation are subject to individual considerations and negotiations. They will depend on the type of the company’s activity and the expected account turnover. 

Types of accounts

Corporate accounts of clients are maintained in the main currency – Euro. However, all of them are opened as multi-currency accounts and allow a wide range of transactions in different currencies, including settlement of various types of payments.

All accounts have IBAN format numbers.

You can choose to open any of the following types of accounts:

• current multi-currency corporate accounts
• deposit accounts
• card accounts with payment cards of this Latvian bank (not a multicurrency one, though)
• investment accounts.

Payment cards

This bank in Latvia issues international payment cards – Visa and Mastercard cards, including the Visa Infinite card. Available are also corporate elite cards: Platinum, Gold, Argentum, Oxygenium. 

Corporate payment cards are linked to a card account. This service is also available for non-residents. For security reasons, the card account is not linked to the current account. 

The card account can be opened in one of the currencies chosen by the client. No interest is charged on the balance on this account.

Internet and mobile banking

Internet and mobile banking solutions are available to customers, so they can manage their funds seamlessly at a distance. The apps can be installed on a personal computer, laptop, smartphone, or any other modern mobile device. It is possible to set up the notification and alerts mode and administer other options. 

At the time of opening the corporate account, you will get the view-only mode access to the internet banking app. Full functionality will become available as soon as all necessary documents (contract, application) are signed. 

Important: Connection to the standard functions of the mobile and internet banking system is free of charge. Corporate clients are offered a more extended service at the monthly fee from 20 to 100 EUR (depending on the number of transactions you are planning). 

Attention: Our experts will help you fill in all the necessary documents in advance so that you can immediately get full access to Internet banking as soon as you get permission from the bank. 

Customers can perform the following operations as the standard internet bank services:

• check the balance in the current and card accounts 
• order new cards and get information about the balance in the current and card accounts 
• place deposits and monitor the balance in the deposit portfolio
• control credit transactions
• print out copies of payment orders
• exchange currency 24/7
• transfer funds between their accounts 24/7
• check the status of the investment portfolio: net asset value, available funding, and free assets
• receive notifications from the bank about such essential events as the extension of authorities, statutory documents, etc.
• maintain personal confidential correspondence with a personal banker, dealing and trading desk staff, credit managers, as well as with the Information Service of the bank
• export statements to XML (Fidavista), CSV, PDF. 

For the purpose of greater security of internet banking, this Latvian bank has set the following limits (by default):

• for each transaction – the maximum amount of 50 000 EUR
• for all transactions per day – the maximum amount of 300 000 EUR. 

When needed, clients can change the limits according to the expected receivables. These limits can be programmed for a certain period or permanently (until the client resets them). 

Currencies

The Latvian Bank has set the euro (EUR) as the base currency. However, operations can involve cross-currency operations:

• US dollars (USD)
• Russian rubles (RUB)
• Armenian drams (AMD)
• Belarusian rubles (BYN)
• Canadian dollars (CAD)
• Swiss francs (CHF)
• Chinese Yuan (CNY)
• Japanese yen (JPY)
• Kazakh tenge (KZT)
• Polish zloty (PLN). 

Corporate clients can enjoy the exchange of major world currencies at very favorable rates if the transaction value is more than 5,000 EUR.

Available services:

• automatic currency exchange
• deliverable exchange transactions (TOD, TOM, SPOT)
• FRW forward transactions
• SWAP purchase and sale transactions
• ORDER transactions (take profit, stop loss). 

Tariffs

A distinctive feature of cooperation with the recommended Latvian bank is its competitive tariffs compared to other European banks. The services are available in Russian and English. The bank has a wide network of correspondent accounts.

Services/orders	For Baltic resident companies, if all beneficiaries of the company are Baltic residents	For Baltic resident companies, if at least one of the beneficiaries of the company is a non-resident in the Baltics	For non-resident companies
Minimum balance	10 000 EUR	10 000 EUR	100 000 EUR
Account maintenance	25 EUR (первые 3 месяца не применяется)	100 EUR (первые 3 месяца не применяется)	200 EUR (первые 3 месяца не применяется)
Services to an inactive client (there have been no payments for two years and no active products)	100 EUR	150 EUR	250 EUR
Intra-bank payments between clients	free	free	free
EUR transfers and payments within EEA	0.35 EUR	0.35 EUR	15 EUR
EUR transfers and payments beyond EEA (OUR/SHA)	30/20 EUR	30/20 EUR	40/30  EUR
USD transfers and payments beyond EEA (OUR/SHA)	60/40 EUR	60/40 EUR	60/40  EUR
RUB transfers and payments beyond EEA	20 EUR	20 EUR	20 EUR

 Important: Tariffs of the bank may be subject to change, request the latest information by writing to our e-mail address – info@offshore-pro.info. 

Investment, business lending, and brokerage services

The bank in Latvia which we recommend has an access to all the world’s leading exchanges and its global network of counterparties. Therefore, the Bank’s customers are offered a vast choice of different brokerage and investment services, including forex, voice trading, and others. Clients have access to business lending services secured by shares, real estate, and assets, or on other terms, including leasing. 

Algorithm for remote opening of a corporate account in Latvia 

To open a corporate account, you need to prepare all requested documents and transfer them via the communication channel indicated by this Latvian bank. If you prefer to submit them in person, you may arrange a visit to the bank’s office in Latvia or some other location.

Important: Some clients can qualify for the unique service – a banker can travel to the applicant’s destination to meet the applicant in person. This option is subject to a special individual agreement.

Provisions for remote opening of a corporate account in Latvia 

1. Send us a request for our professional services – assistance in your opening of a corporate account in Latvia. Our address is info@offshore-pro.info. 
2. Sign an agreement with us and pay our service fee starting at 3 999 EUR. We accept payments by any of the methods: WebMoney, payment card, bank transfer, PayPal, or Western Union. 
3. Fill in the bank forms and prepare the portfolio of documents according to the bank’s requirements and our guidance.

Conditions for the remote opening of a corporate bank account in Latvia

To open a corporate account remotely, you need to meet some conditions:

• sign a special agreement with a notary and send it to the Compliance Department
• the bank will share with you an app so that you could generate your electronic signature on your cell phone
• this digital signature will be used by you to sign all documents requested by the bank 
• after opening an account, the same signature will be used to manage it.

To open a corporate account, the owner of the company will require your video identification (verification of your identity). Then the portfolio of documents will need to be compiled and submitted. Documents of European companies are provided in the original in English. Other clients should notarize the documents and, if necessary, apostille the documents. 

Documents required to open a corporate bank account in Latvia

To open a corporate account in Latvia, a client needs to submit a package of standard documents on behalf of the company certifying its incorporation, formation, and authenticity (Articles of Association, Memorandum, list of beneficiaries, resolution on the appointment of the head of the company, passports of directors/beneficiaries, etc.).

The set of the requested documents may vary slightly depending on the jurisdiction in which the company is registered.

As for the specific requirements of this recommended bank, the client is asked to provide the documented proof of the company’s actual operation in the country of incorporation:

• copies of the rent or ownership  of the office or other premises
• proof of the availability of staff (copies of employment contracts, contracts)
• copy of the annual financial report.

Please note: The procedure of setting up a corporate account will be much easier and faster if your company has a connection in Latvia. Latvian contracts, agreements, invoices from local counterparties, personal connections of beneficiaries, etc. will be appropriate.

You are welcome to ask questions, request a consultation, and order the service of opening a corporate account in Latvia by contacting info@offshore-pro.info.