Money Transmitter ($1,000,000) Bond - Statewide in Pennsylvania

Brief Summary

Pennsylvania sets the money transmitter bond at a flat $1,000,000 for every licensee, large or small, and the Department of Banking and Securities can order more after an examination. A surety bond lets you meet that figure for an annual premium instead of tying up $1,000,000, and the executed bond is uploaded straight into NMLS with your license filing.

Every Pennsylvania money transmitter licensee must post a $1,000,000 surety bond running to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania under 7 P.S. 6106. The amount does not scale down for small operators, and the Department of Banking and Securities can require an additional bond of up to the average daily outstanding transmission balance plus 10 percent. Since Act 7 took effect on August 26, 2025, businesses that transmit virtual currency need this license too, and the Department's bond form covers both money and virtual currency.

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How to Apply for a Money Transmitter ($1,000,000) Bond:

• Confirm your activity requires a license under 7 P.S. 6102 and is not covered by an exemption in 7 P.S. 6103.
• Use the applicant's exact legal name, plus any trade names, as principal on the bond.
• Have the surety execute the Department's Money and Virtual Currency Transmitter Bond form for $1,000,000.
• Upload the original bond and any riders or continuation certificates in NMLS.
• Pay the $5,000 license fee and the $100 NMLS processing fee through NMLS.
• Submit audited GAAP financial statements showing tangible net worth of at least $500,000.
• File each renewal before the license expires, backed by a bond on the same terms.

Detailed Information About the Pennsylvania Money Transmitter ($1,000,000) Bond:

The amount is flat, but it is not a ceiling

Pennsylvania's Money Transmission and Virtual Currency Transmission Business Licensing Law (Act 249 of 1965, 7 P.S. 6101 to 6122) requires each license application to include a bond in the penal sum of $1,000,000, executed by a surety company authorized to transact business in Pennsylvania. There are no tiers based on volume, revenue or number of agents. A startup and a national remitter post the same figure.

The $1,000,000 can grow. Under 7 P.S. 6106(b.1), if the Department of Banking and Securities decides the bond is not adequate, it may, after an examination and a consent agreement or order, require an additional bond of up to the average daily outstanding balance of money received for transmission in Pennsylvania during the 30 days before the requirement, plus another 10 percent of that balance.

Who needs it and who does not

A license, and so the bond, is required to transmit money or virtual currency by means of a transmittal instrument for a fee or other consideration with or on behalf of an individual. Act 7, effective August 26, 2025, added virtual currency transmission, and the Department stated there would be no grace period.

7 P.S. 6103 exempts banks, bank and trust companies, credit unions, savings banks and similar institutions organized under Pennsylvania, federal or other state law, along with their affiliates or agents. It also exempts agents of a licensee, agents disbursing government benefits, and agents that receive payments on behalf of creditors, public utilities or providers of goods and services. Section 6102(b) leaves out transmission between businesses under commercial contracts, unless the contract involves personal or household transmission for individuals, and the use of a self-hosted wallet unless it is used to transmit for others for a fee.

What the bond protects

The bond runs to the Commonwealth for the use of the Commonwealth and any person who was a Pennsylvania resident when a cause of action arose against the licensee for failing to carry out a transmittal instrument. It guarantees compliance with the Act and Department rules and payment of money owed under the Act. A harmed customer must first win a judgment against the licensee, and suit on the bond requires the Department's assent. If a licensee becomes insolvent, the bond is applied to claims from transmittal instruments issued in Pennsylvania and to Department costs and fines. When Sigue Corporation lost its license, the Department obtained its surety bond and urged affected consumers to file claims with the Department.

Filing, fees and renewal

The bond is filed through NMLS. The Pennsylvania NMLS checklist says the original bond, riders and continuation certificates must be uploaded there, with the applicant's legal name and any trade names matching exactly. The license fee is $5,000, applicants need tangible net worth of at least $500,000 shown in audited financial statements prepared under GAAP, and a license runs no more than 14 months as the Department determines. Renewal costs $5,000 and must be accompanied by a bond on the same terms as the original (7 P.S. 6109). The Department's bond form lets the surety cancel only after 30 days written notice.

Eligibility and Requirements for a Pennsylvania Money Transmitter ($1,000,000) Bond:

• Penal sum of $1,000,000, flat, with no volume tiers.
• Surety company authorized to transact business in Pennsylvania.
• Obligee: the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
• Possible additional bond under 7 P.S. 6106(b.1) after an examination and a consent agreement or order.
• Bond kept in force, with cancellation effective no sooner than 30 days after written notice.
• Underwriting review of the company's financial statements and its owners' credit, which sets the premium.

Pennsylvania Money Transmitter ($1,000,000) Bond FAQs:

Official and Additional Resources for the Pennsylvania Money Transmitter ($1,000,000) Bond: