Lithuania issued a large number of e-money institution licences in the years after 2016, and two of the names that stuck are Paysera and Zen. Both are supervised by the Bank of Lithuania. Both give a business a euro IBAN, SEPA access and cards. And both send a questionnaire to any applicant whose activity smells of trading, which is where most brokers, prop firms and signal businesses discover the difference between an EMI and a bank.
What an e-money licence gives you and what it withholds
An EMI can issue electronic money, hold client funds in safeguarding accounts and execute payments. It cannot lend your balance out, and it does not put your money under a deposit guarantee scheme. Instead the funds sit in safeguarding accounts at a credit institution, ring-fenced from the EMI's own money. If the EMI fails, you are meant to be paid from that ring-fenced pool rather than queuing as an ordinary creditor.
That is a different risk shape from a bank, not automatically a worse one, and it is the first thing to explain to a finance director who assumes an IBAN means a bank. The full comparison sits in neobanks versus banks, and the short version is that EMIs are excellent operating accounts and poor places to park reserves.
Paysera in practice
Paysera has been running since well before the current wave of fintech, and it shows in the product. The account handles a long list of currencies, SEPA transfers in euro, SWIFT for the rest, and conversion inside the account. Pricing is published as a public fee table rather than negotiated, which for a small firm is a genuine advantage: you can model your payment costs before you apply.
The interface is functional rather than polished. There is an API for payment initiation and statement retrieval, which matters if you want deposits and withdrawals reconciled automatically instead of by a person reading a CSV. Paysera also runs a payment gateway product for merchants, though a trading firm collecting deposits will normally use a specialist processor for cards and keep the EMI for bank transfers and payroll.
Where Paysera is weak for our sector is risk appetite. Financial services activity is on the sensitive list, and a firm that describes itself as a broker or a prop firm should expect a detailed review rather than a same-day opening.
Zen in practice
Zen is younger and more consumer-facing in its design, with a business tier layered on top. It issues euro IBANs, provides cards, and offers merchant acquiring alongside the account, which is the pitch that attracts e-commerce sellers. Multi-currency support exists but the currency list is shorter than Paysera's, so a firm collecting in a wide spread of currencies should check the list against its own deposit mix before committing.
For a trading firm the interesting part of Zen is the combination of account and card acceptance in one relationship. That sounds convenient, and sometimes it is. It also concentrates risk: a compliance decision on the acquiring side can affect the account side, and vice versa. Concentration is the reason we argue for running more than one payment provider as a matter of course.
Where both will slow down
Neither provider is a specialist in regulated financial firms, and both apply the standard high-risk screening. Expect the same file either way:
| Question | What they are testing | What to prepare |
|---|---|---|
| Who owns the company? | Beneficial ownership and sanctions exposure | Register extract, ownership chart, passports for anyone above the threshold |
| What exactly do you sell? | Whether you handle client money | A plain description, plus your licence or an explanation of why none is required |
| Where do payments come from and go? | Corridor and country risk | Expected volumes by country, named counterparties, your processor list |
| Who are your clients? | Retail versus corporate, and jurisdiction | Your own KYC procedure and evidence it is applied |
Answering vaguely is the single most common reason an application dies. A firm that says "online services" and later receives its first batch of retail deposits will be frozen, and the freeze arrives at the worst moment, usually mid-campaign. The onboarding pack described in banking for trading firms takes a day to assemble and saves weeks.
Client funds and company funds do not belong in the same EMI account, and in most licensed setups they must not be. If you are regulated, your segregation obligations come from your own regulator, not from the payment provider, and an EMI account is rarely an acceptable home for segregated client money.
Choosing between them
For a small firm whose main need is a predictable euro operating account with wide currency coverage and published pricing, Paysera is the more straightforward answer. For a firm that also wants card acceptance from the same provider and values a cleaner interface, Zen is worth the conversation, with the caveat about concentration.
Neither should be your only rail. The pattern that survives is boring: one account at a real bank for reserves and payroll, one or two EMIs for operating flow and supplier payments, and separate specialist processors for client deposits. When one link breaks, and one always eventually does, the business keeps running.
The other habit worth building is watching the fee that nobody quotes. Conversion spread on incoming currency usually costs more over a year than transfer fees do, and it is invisible unless someone reconciles the applied rate against the mid-market rate. The mechanics are in currency conversion fees, and the discipline is the same whichever provider you pick.
"An EMI account is a working account, not a treasury. Treat it as the place money passes through, and keep the balance small enough that a compliance review never becomes an emergency."
— Roman Onta, Executive Director, SINGUARD
Key Takeaways
- Paysera and Zen both operate under Lithuanian e-money licences supervised by the Bank of Lithuania, so client funds sit in safeguarding accounts rather than under a deposit guarantee scheme.
- Paysera offers wider currency coverage and a public fee table; Zen pairs the account with merchant acquiring in one relationship.
- Both apply high-risk screening to trading firms, and a vague business description is the usual reason an application fails.
- Use EMIs as operating accounts alongside a real bank and separate deposit processors, never as the single rail for the whole business.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Paysera a bank?
No. Paysera operates as an electronic money institution licensed in Lithuania. It can issue IBANs, hold funds in safeguarding accounts and execute payments, but it does not take deposits as a bank does and balances are not covered by a deposit guarantee scheme.
Can a broker or prop firm open a Zen or Paysera account?
It is possible but never automatic. Both providers treat financial services as sensitive activity and will ask for ownership documents, a licence or a clear explanation of why none is required, expected payment corridors and your own KYC procedure. Incomplete answers are the usual reason applications are declined.
Should client deposits be held in an EMI account?
For a regulated firm, segregation requirements come from its own regulator and an EMI account is rarely acceptable for segregated client money. Most firms use EMIs for operating flow and supplier payments, and hold client funds where their licence requires.
About the Author
Roman Onta is an Executive Director at SINGUARD. He builds the Prop Firm CRM, the Broker CRM, Scalegram and CopySignals side by side with his brother Alex Onta, and he helped on the design of eTrader, the division Alex built and leads. His ground is worldwide payment processing, AML compliance and the corporate structures brokers are built on, work the two of them carry together, shaped by executive roles in the UAE and international corporates. He lives and works in Dubai for most of the year. Meet the executive duo leading Singuard's five divisions.