Direct answer
If you receive, transmit or execute orders, deal on own account, manage portfolios or advise on financial instruments, you need a MiFID II investment firm authorisation.34 Which services and which instruments is decided by the lists in Annex I to MiFID II.3 An authorised firm may operate in other Member States by notifying its home authority, and its initial capital depends on exactly which activities it is permitted to carry out.67
Who this applies to
- Brokerage and trading platforms
- Portfolio managers and automated advice services
- Firms dealing on own account or operating trading venues
- Wealth and investment fintechs entering the EU
Regulated activities
Routes to market
Own MiFID authorisation
A full investment firm licence, able to operate across the EEA on notification, with capital tiered by permitted activity.67
Tied agent
A tied agent acts for one investment firm only and under the full and unconditional responsibility of that firm, is entered on a public register, and may hold client money only where the Member State allows it. A tied agent established in another Member State is treated as a branch there.5
Acquisition
Acquire an existing investment firm, subject to qualifying-holding approval.
Capital and substance
- Initial capital EUR 750 000 where the firm may deal on own account or underwrite or place on a firm commitment basis.7
- Initial capital EUR 75 000 where the firm may not hold client money or securities and is limited to the services the directive lists for that tier.7
- Initial capital EUR 150 000 in the remaining cases.7
- Governance, conduct of business and best-execution frameworks.
- The head office must be in the same Member State as the registered office.124
Authorisation stages
- 1
Classification
Determine the Annex I services and the instrument scope.3
- 2
Pre-application
Prepare capital, governance and conduct documentation.
- 3
Submission and review
File with the competent authority and respond to questions.
- 4
Authorisation and cross-border notification
Notify host states and complete operational readiness.6
Where applications commonly fail
Frequently asked questions
An authorised investment firm may provide services cross-border or establish a branch in another Member State by notifying its home competent authority, which transmits the notification to the host authority. The scope reaches only as far as the permissions the firm actually holds.
Primary sources for this page
7 citations, each to the article or section the statement rests on. The numbers beside a statement point to the citation behind it. Always confirm against the current official text.
- 3Annex I, Sections A, B and C: investment services and activities, ancillary services and financial instrumentsDirective 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial instrumentsEuropean Parliament and Council of the European Union
- 5Article 29, tied agents, and Article 35(2) on tied agents established in another Member StateDirective 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial instrumentsEuropean Parliament and Council of the European Union
- 6Article 34, freedom to provide investment services, and Article 35, establishment of a branchDirective 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on markets in financial instrumentsEuropean Parliament and Council of the European Union
- 7Article 9(1) to 9(4), initial capital of investment firms by permitted activity, and Article 11, composition of initial capitalDirective (EU) 2019/2034 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 on the prudential supervision of investment firmsEuropean Parliament and Council of the European Union
Last updated 2026-08-21. 2 min read, calculated from 464 words.