Opening a FiatFlex account: the documents asked for and how verification runs
Identity document, proof of address, SEPA bank account, and for a company its registration and beneficial owners: the verification journey step by step.
By FiatFlex ·
To take payments with FiatFlex, the app asks for a photo of an identity document, your address, a SEPA bank account in your name and, if you are taking payments for a company, its registration documents and the list of its beneficial owners. Opening the account is free, and the exact list is shown screen by screen in the app.
What follows is the journey as it exists in the app on 26 September 2026. It can change: Stripe and Bridge are the ones verifying, and either can ask for an extra document. When that happens, the app shows exactly what is missing instead of leaving you to guess.
Why two verifications rather than one
FiatFlex is not a bank, not a payment institution and not an electronic money institution. The regulated parties in the chain are Stripe for cards and Bridge for stablecoins. Each has its own know-your-customer, anti-money-laundering and sanctions-screening obligations, and each has its own terms to accept. That is why the journey has two terms acceptances instead of one, on the providers' own pages.
The wallet we operate on your behalf is custody: FiatFlex holds those funds until you ask for a conversion or a withdrawal. It is not self-custody, and that is part of why the verification exists at all.
What the app asks an individual for
The journey has seven steps: account type, identity and address, bank details, documents, Bridge terms, Stripe terms, then a summary before you submit.
Identity and address. First name, last name, date of birth, nationality, phone number, and a full address with city, postal code and country. The minimum age is 18: a more recent date of birth is refused as you type it, before you upload a single document. Residents of the European Economic Area can also give their city of birth.
Bank details. The bank name, the IBAN and the account holder's name. The IBAN is checked inside the app: format, expected length for the country, and check digits. A typo is flagged there and then, rather than when a transfer fails.
Documents. A passport, a driving licence or a national identity card, with its number; a photo of the front, and of the back except for a passport; a proof of address.
What a company adds
The company's identity. Legal name, registration number, and the first and last name of the representative filling in the file.
The business profile. Legal form, industry, a description of the business of at least twenty characters, an annual revenue band, the source of funds and the purpose of the account. These are asked as pick lists in the app, not as free text to invent.
The company's documents. Proof of registration, a formation document (a Kbis in France), an ownership document such as a shareholder register, and a company proof of address.
The beneficial owners. You either attest that you own the company alone, or you declare every person who holds 25% or more, with an identity document for each. That attestation is yours: nobody fills it in for you.
One French detail worth knowing: Stripe states that a French account can process Cartes Bancaires payments once it has provided the business tax ID (Stripe documentation for France, read on 26 September 2026). That is why the tax ID is asked for, rather than as one more formality.
Getting the file together in one go
| Item | Individual | Company |
|---|---|---|
| Valid identity document | Yes, front and back except for a passport | Yes, for the representative and for every beneficial owner at 25% or more |
| Proof of address | Yes | Yes, the representative's and the company's |
| SEPA bank account | Yes, in your name | Yes, in the company's name |
| Registration, formation, shareholder register | No | Yes |
Photograph documents flat, in full, with all four corners visible and no glare: an unreadable document gets sent back, and that is time lost for nothing.
The two approvals do not land together
Stripe and Bridge review your file each on their own side, and their answers can arrive at different moments. Taking cards, with Tap to Pay or with a payment link, opens as soon as Stripe has approved your account. Taking stablecoins and converting them into euros wait instead on Bridge's approval: a payment request in USDC or EURC is only accepted after that. Being able to take a card while the stablecoin rail is still under review is therefore normal, not the sign of a stuck file.
When a provider asks for more
The app then shows what is being asked for, and by whom. When the fix has to happen at the provider, it opens Stripe's or Bridge's own secure page, with a link generated at the moment you tap, because those links are single use and expire quickly. There is nothing to email, and no document travels through an inbox.
The status stays visible in the app, with a button to refresh it while you are waiting for an answer.
We do not publish a verification time, here or anywhere else. It depends on Stripe and Bridge, and announcing a delay nobody has confirmed to us would be a promise, not information.
What opening an account costs
Nothing. No subscription, no signup fee, no hardware to buy. You only pay when you take a payment: 0.50% commission on cards on top of Stripe's fees, 1% on a conversion of stablecoins into euros, while accepting stablecoins is free. The full schedule, worked out on €10 and on €100, is in FiatFlex pricing, and the short version is on the pricing page.
Once the account is verified, cards are taken straight on your iPhone: the requirements and the first payment are described in Tap to Pay on iPhone in France. To start, download the app.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a company to open an account?
No. The individual journey exists and is enough. A sole trader can add a trading name different from their legal name there, and that field is optional.
Can I start without every document to hand?
Yes. The form is saved as a draft on your phone: you close the app, come back with the missing document, and pick up where you stopped.
Which bank account is needed?
A SEPA account, in your name or your company's. That is where withdrawals of the card balance and conversions of stablecoins into euros are sent.
How long does verification take?
We do not publish a time, because the decision belongs to Stripe and Bridge. The app shows the state of the file, and a button refreshes it whenever you want to know where it stands.
Who sees my documents?
They are used for the verification carried out by Stripe and Bridge, the two regulated providers in the chain. How the data is handled is described in the privacy policy.