Its simplicity and flexibility is only second to none. If you are thinking of automating your bureau de change, you have come to the right place. If you are starting your business and only deal with cash, travelers checks as the most common form of payment, then the POS is going to change your business forever.
POS is idea for the following businesses
Small Currency Exchange kiosk and outlets in airports and shopping centers
Money Exchange Bureaus, Bureau de Change (BDC), Casa de Cambios
Travel Agencies (e.g. American Express, Travelex, )
Hotels and motels
Tourist shops
Cruise ships
Resorts
Casinos
Features of POS
Easy to use and Multi-currency Point Of Sale (POS) system
Advanced Currency Rate Calculator
Print transaction tickets on any printer (POS printer or laser printers)
Full-featured Customer Relationship Management (CRM) with KYC record-keeping
Tellerproof system for End of Day cash reconciliation (EOD cash control)
Currency Denominations Tracking for all world currencies
Automatic or manual update of currency rates including Gold, Platinum and Silver Bullion
Multi-Currency Double-Entry Accounting (GL, Sub-Ledger, journal ledger)
View calculated rates in real time including: avg. buy rates, holding cost, cost of purchase, break-even rates, short and long positions, coverage rates, cost of goods sold, exposure, and historical rates
Record keeping for live forex trades, rate bookings, futures, wires and deliveries
P&L report per currency (both realized and unrealized gains)
Record multiple payments in one invoice (Cash and Travelers Checks)
Rule-based Fee Structure definition
Rule-based AML policy declaration module
AML Compliance Software
If you are not aware of it, there has been an increasing trend about banks, credit unions and other financial institutions closing down the bank accounts of MSB (Money Service Businesses). This phenomenon is more prevalent in the US and Canada, but have been followed in other countries too.
The general impression is that banks are trying to kill their competition by eliminating their ability to bank. Although that may seem like a valid perception, it is not the general purpose of this practice. The reason boils down to risk vs. benefit management. MSBs are inherently “high risk” as they can involuntarily help facilitate money laundering and terrorist financing through lack of proper systems and processes in place.
There are more than one factor or two that determine the risk score of an MSB. Banks have to go through a very long and thorough process of risk-assessment to evaluate the capacity of an MSB in terms of fighting money laundering and terrorist financing.
Every bank has a different way of evaluating their customers, but most share some common criteria. These are some of the issues that could influence the bank’s decision:
Computerized AML Compliant Record Keeping System (the system that you are using must be compliant with regulations). MSBs that are using manual record-keeping system will have a zero chance to keep their accounts.
Number of branches that you have (the higher, the riskier). If you run a multi-branch operation, you must have a way to consolidate the data between your branches and report suspicious aestivates.
Your management should be aware and trained on all the regulations for AML and ATF. You should keep and provide evidence of your management training in regulatory safeguards, record-keeping and reporting.
The variety of services that your MSB offers (remittance, cash, cheque cashing, dealing precious metals, etc…); more services is usually riskier. As the bank will have to report your MSB’s transaction to your regulator, they want to know how much reporting cost you will bring them.
AML (Anti-Money-Laundering) & ATF (Anti-Terrorist Financing) program in place (manual of AML and ATF custom-made for your business). Your compliance manual should mention how you will perform your KYC, KYA (Know Your Agent) , KYE (Know Your Employee) , 24-hr rule, sanction list checks every time you deal with recurring clients. A generic compliance manual will not be acceptable by the banks anymore.
Background checks against sanction lists: must be automated, they will not believe that you will ever do this manually. Your list must be updated at least weekly.
Reporting program. Please keep all records of your reporting.
As an MSB, you are prone to having suspicious transactions. You must keep the evidence and provide it to the bank.
Interview: you will be interviewed and the branch manager will put their own recommendation. Some interviews are unofficial and may be done over the phone. You should be very well prepared to answer questions from the bank regarding your compliance program.
Training program: you should have regular compliance training program for your staff. Keep a record of all training and provide to the bank as proof of your training program in action.
Internal Audit program: You must mention in your compliance manual that you have provisioned an internal risk-assessment program