Source of wealth documentation is evidence that explains how your business or its owners accumulated the overall wealth or assets that the business holds. It is broader than source of funds, which focuses on where specific transaction money comes from. Source of wealth is about the bigger picture: how did this wealth come to exist in the first place?
For example, if a business is funded primarily by a founder who sold a previous company, the source of wealth would be that sale. If it is backed by investors who made their money in real estate, the source of wealth would be those real estate activities. If the business itself has been generating profits over many years, the source of wealth is its own operating history.
Source of wealth checks are a core part of enhanced due diligence and are required for certain categories of business accounts. They are particularly relevant where the business is holding or transacting with significant assets, or where the beneficial owners of the business have substantial personal wealth that feeds into the entity.
The purpose is to ensure that the wealth associated with the account has a legitimate and documented origin. This is required under FinCEN regulations and is standard practice across regulated financial institutions.
The document you submit must clearly show all of the following:
Required information | Details |
|---|---|
Business or individual name | The name of the business or the beneficial owner the document relates to. |
Explanation of how the wealth was generated | A clear narrative or documented evidence of the activity that created the wealth. |
Dates and amounts where relevant | For example, the date and proceeds of an asset sale, or a multi-year financial history. |
Supporting signatures, stamps, or issuing authority confirmation | The document should be official, signed, or issued by a recognized authority where possible. |
Any of the following will be accepted, provided they include the required information listed above:
Where the source of wealth involves multiple events or streams, for example a combination of operating profits and a capital raise, it is helpful to provide documents for each. A brief written explanation of the overall picture alongside the supporting documents can also help speed up the review process.
Source of wealth can be one of the more complex documents to pull together, particularly for businesses with layered ownership or a history that spans multiple years or jurisdictions. Contact our onboarding support team before submitting if you are unsure what to provide. We would rather help you get it right the first time than ask you to resubmit.