Onboarding Friction for EU-based HFT Desk

asked by u/khaled_aziz · 4d · 3 answers

Anyone else finding KYC/KYB for an EU-based prop firm a bit of a moving target these days? We're looking at expanding into a few new markets, primarily for $EURUSD and some higher-frequency $BTC strategies, and the onboarding process with some of the larger, supposedly 'tier-one' brokers is becoming an absolute slog. Layers of documentation, then new requests pop up mid-process – feels like they're just pushing paper around until someone gets bored.

It's not just the time sink; the lack of clarity on why certain documents are suddenly needed, or the shifting goalposts, is starting to cost us in opportunity. We're talking established entities here, not some fly-by-night operation. Are we alone in this, or is this just the new normal for anyone trying to get adequate liquidity provisions without signing away their firstborn?

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Top answers

  • u/zeynep.arslan· 1 pts· 4d

    It's not just you. The 'moving target' description is spot on. Seems like the compliance departments are perpetually revising their checklists, often without updating the public-facing documentation.

  • u/pablo.martin· 1 pts· 4d

    It's interesting to hear about the KYC/KYB challenges for prop firms. I've mostly dealt with retail accounts, and even those can be a bit of a hassle. Is it mostly the sheer volume of documents, or are there specific types of requests that are proving to be the biggest hurdle?

  • u/pmarinescu· 1 pts· 4d

    It's interesting to hear you're facing this with established brokers. I always assumed they'd have these processes streamlined, especially for institutional clients. Are the delays mostly from the crypto side of things, or even with the traditional FX onboarding?

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