OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) is launching an updated website for the Center for FinTech Information (CFI) to foster improved communication between Washington State financial regulators and FinTech companies, start-ups, and entrepreneurs.
“DFI is committed to fostering responsible innovation in the State of Washington,” DFI Director Charlie Clark said, adding the website was updated because “we heard the technology community loud and clear — additional resources have been allocated to the CFI to bridge the regulatory gap between traditional financial services and technology companies.”
New and improved CFI website content includes:
- Improved methods of contacting the CFI, including monthly office hours (every third Wednesday of the month, 10 - 11:30 a.m. Pacific Time);
- An interactive decision tree assisting incorporators in determining which regulations and licenses apply to a proposed FinTech business;
- A comprehensive FinTech timeline providing a summary of all major financial developments and pronouncements established over the past 150 years;
- A newly developed FinTech glossary of terms; and
- User-friendly re-formatted FinTech licensing and regulation guidance.
- The revamped CFI site can be found at https://dfi.wa.gov/fintech
The original CFI site was launched on May 13, 2021. DFI received extensive feedback from the technology community since that launch date, spurring the creation of additional informational content that may be used for companies, consumers, and educational purposes. Although the site is relaunching, the central mission has not changed. The CFI provides the following services:
- Providing information about doing business in Washington as a regulated entity;
- Answering questions about Washington’s financial laws, rules, and regulations that DFI administers (money transmission, securities, lending, and banking);
- Assisting applicants in navigating the licensing process; and
- Reviewing business concepts and/or business plans to identify potential business activities that may be regulated by DFI.