Opening a business account for a Latvian SIA with non-resident owners

Two founders from Kyiv and Berlin set up a software SIA in Riga with a small office and three local developers. The first bank they approach asks for client contracts, payroll records and a description of every country they expect money from. The second asks for the same, and a meeting. Both open the account, eventually. A friend's Riga SIA with no staff and clients in three offshore jurisdictions is declined everywhere.

Why Latvia is strict

Latvia's banking sector once served large numbers of non-resident companies, many of them shells. After 2018, under pressure from international regulators and following the collapse of ABLV Bank, Latvia overhauled its approach. Banks closed accounts for high-risk non-resident clients and now apply detailed checks to any company owned or run from abroad.

That history shapes onboarding today. A reviewer's first question is: why is this company in Latvia?

What helps

Real activity is the strongest answer:

• staff in Latvia, on Latvian payroll,
• an office, not only a registered address,
• Latvian or EU clients and suppliers,
• a business that makes sense in Latvia.

A Latvian holding with no activity and owners elsewhere will struggle with any provider.

The documents

Expect to provide:

1. An extract from the Register of Enterprises and the articles of association.
2. Identity and address documents for directors and beneficial owners, matching the register.
3. A business description with expected monthly volumes, client and supplier countries, and currencies.
4. Contracts or invoices that support it.
5. Evidence of source of funds for capital and first operations.

Where reviews stall

Inconsistency is the main problem: owners declared differently to the register and to the provider, a business description that does not match the expected payments, or client countries that the description never mentioned. Prepare the file so a reviewer can follow the money from first contract to last payment.

Paying into Latvia: the local rail

Source: European Payments Council: SEPA Instant Credit Transfer. Checked when this guide was last updated; the scheme's own page has the current figures.

Where Rivet fits

A Rivet business account accepts applications from registered companies, including Latvian SIAs with non-resident owners, with the document list shown up front and a verification decision aimed within three business days. Approved companies get US dollar details on every plan and, from the Growth plan, euro details with an IBAN and sterling details, in the company's own name. Rivet is not a bank; regulated partner institutions hold the funds and make the final approval.

See also why business accounts get closed.