--- title: "Crypto Business Licensing" url: "https://legal.ge/en/service/technology-and-digital-law-en/crypto-business-licensing-en" field: "Technology & Digital Law" description: "Crypto business licensing in Georgia: NBG registration for virtual asset service providers, requirements and activity limits. Legal.ge." reviewed: "2026-06-27" updated: "2026-10-14" publisher: "legal.ge" --- # Crypto Business Licensing > Source: legal.ge, https://legal.ge/en/service/technology-and-digital-law-en/crypto-business-licensing-en ## Registration and authorization of a crypto business: the anatomy of the process Carrying on a business in virtual assets in Georgia rests on two steps: first, the definition of the entity and the ordering of its services, and second, registration with the National Bank and conformity with its authorization requirements. The law describes this process in detail: who supervises, what registration demands, what follows it, and who orders the rules themselves. On this page we explain the mechanism stage by stage. If your question is the licence itself rather than the anatomy of the stages, our dedicated guide on [VASP licence in Georgia](https://legal.ge/en/service/technology-and-digital-law-en/vasp-license-georgia-nbg-requirements-cost) walks through the full registration cycle with the National Bank. ## Stage one: registration and its conditions A virtual asset service provider is obliged to register with the National Bank and to satisfy its requirements. The rules of registration, deregistration and regulation are determined by a normative act of the National Bank — the concrete shape of the process therefore changes with the regulator's acts, and knowing them precisely is part of the preparation. Registration carries strict conditions: providing services through an unregistered person is impermissible, and a registered provider is prohibited from carrying on activity other than the provision of the services, the ancillary activity connected with them and the exchange of its own virtual asset. Supervision itself includes registration and its cancellation, inspection and regulation, instructions, restrictions and sanctions. ## Stage two: the compliance that follows registration Authorization is not a one-off event. The list of the National Bank's powers defines what a provider must reckon with after registration as well: on-site or remote inspection; audit of accounting documents and reporting; the demand and receipt of any information, including confidential information. The permanent foundation of compliance consists of the requirements the Bank imposes through legal acts: the minimum supervisory capital and its calculation; criteria towards capital and assets; standards for the storage of assets; standards for the management of risks — including operational and cyber-security risks — and a general risk-management framework; the accompanying information for transfers; and requirements towards holders of a significant share and administrators. On violation the Bank may restrict or suspend the activity and impose a sanction, including a monetary fine. ## Stage three: governance and control — who and how Who stands behind this regime? Under the organic law on the National Bank, the main task of the Bank is to ensure price stability, and supervision of the financial sector is among its functions. The council of the Bank provides the supreme governance and oversight of the Bank's activity. The council's powers directly concern providers: it defines the main directions of the supervision and regulation of the financial sector and issues legal acts — it is in these acts that the rules of registration and regulation a provider works under are born. Among the council's functions are also the consideration of the Bank's reporting and its submission to Parliament, which secures the public character of the regulation. The full text is available on legal.ge after signing in: https://legal.ge/en/service/technology-and-digital-law-en/crypto-business-licensing-en ### What is the difference between registration and authorization here? Registration is the act of entry in the National Bank, whose rules are set by a normative act of the Bank; authorization is the systematic satisfaction of its requirements, which continues after registration as well. ### Can other activity be carried on in parallel? A registered provider is prohibited from carrying on activity other than the provision of the services, the ancillary activity connected with them and the exchange of its own virtual asset. ### What happens when requirements are violated? The National Bank may issue written instructions, impose restrictions, suspend particular operations and impose a sanction, including a monetary fine. ### Where do the rules change? The rules are determined by the National Bank and its council — the council issues legal acts and sets the main directions of supervision and regulation of the financial sector. Changes are reflected in the normative acts. ### Do I need a license for a crypto business in Georgia? If the business will provide virtual asset services, yes in substance: the provider must register with the National Bank of Georgia and satisfy its requirements under Article 52-5, and providing such services without registration is impermissible apart from financial-sector representatives authorized by their own sector legislation. What exactly counts as a virtual asset service is defined by other provisions of the legislation. Note also that a registered provider may not carry on any other activity besides the service itself, the auxiliary activity necessary for it, and the exchange of its own virtual asset.