A business does not have the same statutory right to a basic payment account as a consumer. Nevertheless, in certain circumstances a bank may be obliged to offer or continue a business payment account. Relevant factors include the importance of access to payment services, the specific risks and the available alternatives. A Wwft problem (under the Dutch Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing Act) therefore calls for a well-substantiated file and a workable proposal.
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Written by Onur Arslan, attorney at Arslan Advocaten. Registered in the specialisation register of the Netherlands Bar for employment law and personal injury. Onur Arslan practised for many years as a corporate lawyer and insolvency trustee (curator) and has extensive experience in financial law disputes. Last updated: 17 September 2026.
Start with the reason for the refusal or termination. Is the bank unable to complete its customer due diligence, does it consider your activities too risky, or are certain documents missing? Then record which payments are essential and which measures could limit the risk. Simply stating that your business cannot survive without an account is usually not enough.
Who is this problem relevant to
A business account may be essential for a self-employed professional (zzp’er), a company, a foundation, an association or another organisation. Think of receiving turnover, paying staff and paying taxes. Some organisations face additional checks because of international money flows, cash turnover or a complex ownership structure.
The legal form is not the only criterion. A self-employed professional is a natural person, but when using a business payment account acts in the course of his or her profession or business. As a result, consumer rules do not automatically apply. Nor does the use of a private account automatically turn a business problem into a consumer dispute.
A bank may attach conditions to the use of its products. Check, therefore, whether business transactions via your private account are permitted. Do not present a private account in the name of a director or family member as a structural solution without examining the legal and administrative consequences. Unclear money flows may in fact raise new questions.
A new application differs from an existing relationship
In the case of a first application, the bank’s freedom of contract plays an important role. The bank must also be able to carry out its statutory due diligence before accepting a customer. When an existing relationship is terminated, additional factors come into play: the existing agreement, the duration of the relationship, the agreed terms and the transition to another bank.
So record what you are asking for: opening a new account, reconsidering a termination decision or lifting a temporary block. These are different requests. If the bank has already terminated the account, state the end date and the services that will stop. If an application is left pending, ask which documents or assessment steps are still outstanding.
Also pay attention to additional facilities. An ordinary business payment account, cash deposits, international payments, direct debit collection services and credit each carry different risks. Sometimes a limited payment account can be considered even though a specific facility is refused. A targeted request may therefore offer more room than demanding the full former package of services.
What has the Supreme Court said about business accounts?
In the case of ING v Yin Yang, the Supreme Court of the Netherlands (Hoge Raad) confirmed that the social position of banks may mean that they must also offer a payment account to non-consumers. The interest in being able to participate in society, which is not possible without an account, carries great weight. However, the circumstances and interests of the bank remain relevant.
In that case, a distinction was made between access to a payment account and facilities for cash deposits. The bank did not have to provide every facility requested. The judgment therefore does not confer an unconditional right to every banking product. It supports a specific balancing of interests regarding the payment function that a business needs. See Supreme Court, 5 November 2021.
For your file, this means that you must describe the necessary services precisely. Which payments must be possible? Which activities raise the most questions? Are checks or restrictions possible? A proposal based on verifiable assumptions fits this balancing exercise better than an appeal to the judgment without an explanation of your own situation.
Wwft obligations continue to apply
Among other things, the bank must know the organisation, its representatives and its ultimate beneficial owners. It examines the purpose and nature of the relationship and checks whether transactions match the known profile. If the required due diligence cannot be completed, continuation may be prohibited under Article 5 of the Wwft.
Registration in the trade register does not answer every due diligence question. The bank may need more information about the actual activities, the ownership structure, the source of funds or the role of other parties. So do not only provide formal documents, but also an understandable description of the business model and the money flows.
Check whether the questions relate to the same period and the same legal entity. Within a group, turnover, staff, ownership and bank accounts may be spread across different entities. An unclear explanation of that may be seen as an inconsistency. Where relevant, add a simple organisation chart and an explanation of intra-group payments.
Describe your activities clearly
Explain in plain language what the business sells or organises, who its customers are and how they pay. Explain any discrepancies between the description of activities in the trade register, the website and the actual work carried out. An outdated website may, for example, give the impression that you still carry out activities that have since ceased.
Prepare an overview of countries, currencies, payment methods and usual transaction amounts, insofar as the bank asks for this. Explain seasonal peaks, advance payments and refunds. For international payments, the contractual role of the recipient may be important. A name on an invoice is not always enough to understand the economic background.
Support your description with existing business documents. Think of contracts, invoices, annual accounts, transaction lists and licences if these are required for your activities. Make sure the data are consistent with one another. Do not add fictitious contracts or backdated documents to fill an administrative gap.
Cash turnover and other risk factors
A sector or cash turnover must not simply be equated with criminality. At the same time, the bank may consider additional investigation necessary to understand money flows. Focus your response on the specific risks the bank mentions and on how you can demonstrate the source and destination of funds.
With cash turnover, till reports, a cash book, stock records and deposit receipts may be relevant together. Explain why amounts are deposited at different times. Indicate which internal controls exist and who is responsible for the cash. An independent explanation of the accounts may help, but does not automatically replace missing transaction documents.
Even a lawful activity may, in the bank’s view, involve a risk that it cannot adequately manage. The question then is what specific objections the bank has and whether they can be reduced by organising matters differently. You do not have to accept every policy choice, but an alternative must be practically workable and legally permitted.
A proposal for limited services
A suitable proposal may concern non-cash payments only, precisely defined use of the account or additional provision of information. Which arrangements are possible depends on the risk and the product. You can ask the bank to assess whether a limited account is sufficient to make the necessary business payments.
| Part of your proposal | What you set out specifically |
|---|---|
| Purpose of the account | Which business payments will be made with it |
| Money flows | From which activities income will be received |
| Restrictions | Which facilities you will not request for the time being |
| Records | Which documents will be made available periodically |
| Responsibility | Who manages the use of the account and the provision of information |
| Review | When it will be assessed whether the arrangements are still appropriate |
This is not a standard recipe that forces acceptance. A bank must carry out its own statutory assessment. The proposal does, however, show whether less far-reaching solutions have been seriously examined. Ask for a substantive response to the main elements and record any practical objections.
Evidence that there are no alternatives
Approach other providers in good time where reasonably possible. Keep your applications, follow-up questions and rejections. Note which product you applied for and which reason for refusal was given. This prevents a list of general contacts from being presented as evidence that no account whatsoever is available.
Check whether an alternative is actually suitable. Can the account process the necessary payments, is it in the name of the correct entity and are the terms of use appropriate? A payment service provider is not, for every business, equivalent to a full banking relationship. Conversely, a limited solution may well be sufficient for temporary continuity.
Be open about a pending application or an account that is already available. That information may affect the urgency and the relief required. The aim is a realistic picture of your payment options, not leaving out information that fits less well with the desired position.
Which consequences for the business can be demonstrated?
Draw up a payment schedule for the coming weeks. List salaries, taxes, rent, suppliers and other obligations. Add evidence of due dates and the consequences of non-payment. Also state which incoming payments are at risk of failing and whether payment terminals or direct debit mandates are linked to the account.
Distinguish liquidity from access to the account. A business with sufficient funds may still be unable to pay because of a block. A business without funds also has a financing problem. The bank may assess those situations differently. Show clearly which part of the problem is caused by the measure concerning the account.
If you claim to have suffered loss through a missed contract, record the contract, the required payment facility and the rejection. An expected turnover is not automatic proof of loss. In the case of a substantial claim, an accountant or financial expert may be needed to compare the likely course of events without the bank’s measure with the actual situation.
Your business’s first formal response
Have the response signed by someone who is authorised to represent the organisation. Identify the entity, account and letter concerned. Then describe which ground is disputed, which missing information is being supplemented and which arrangement is needed. Add a list of enclosures that corresponds to the bank’s questions.
A core passage you can adapt reads: “Our company requests a reassessment of [decision]. The enclosed documents clarify [activities and money flows]. We also ask you to assess whether continuation is possible subject to the proposed restrictions. Without a payment account, the obligations listed in enclosure [number] cannot be met. The documented applications to other providers have so far resulted in [outcome]. We would appreciate your response before [date] and confirmation of the services in the interim period.”
A response date that you specify does not automatically bind the bank. Therefore ask explicitly for arrangements covering the period until its reply. Keep the complete version sent and any upload confirmations. Coordinate the response with your accountant or other adviser if their documents form an important part of the substantiation.
Can a business owner go to Kifid?
Kifid, the Dutch Financial Services Complaints Tribunal, does not deal with every business dispute. For small business owners, there are options for certain types of financing and financing advice, subject to conditions regarding the product, the provider and the applicable code of conduct. This does not create general jurisdiction for every dispute about a business payment account.
So first check the provider’s current membership and the rules. A business owner may also be a consumer in another relationship, but this is assessed per product and capacity. The mere fact that you have a sole proprietorship is not enough to bring all banking disputes under consumer rules.
For access to an account, the civil court may be the appropriate route. Seek advice in advance on the correct party, jurisdiction and the measure to be requested. This avoids losing time, because it is clear from the outset who must be addressed and why the chosen procedure can decide on the business account.
What do you ask for in interim relief proceedings
If essential business payments are under acute threat, interim relief proceedings (kort geding) may be considered. In those proceedings you ask for a provisional measure, for example temporary continuation of an account or the provision of limited payment facilities. You must adequately substantiate the urgency, the legal ground and the practical feasibility.
The court will also weigh the risks and statutory obligations of the bank. A business cannot successfully ask only that the bank disregard the Wwft. The file must show why, in your view, the necessary services are possible within the law, or why the impediment put forward has not been adequately substantiated.
Make the request as precise as possible. An account without cash deposits may be assessed differently from the restoration of all services. Discuss legal costs, the chance of the claim being rejected and what a provisional judgment does and does not solve. Sometimes further proceedings remain necessary for a final ruling or compensation.
Deal with credit and registrations separately
Losing a payment account may be connected with the termination of a credit facility, but the agreement and the applicable standard differ. A bank may also rely on securities, information obligations or credit terms. For this, see the explanation about a loan that is suddenly called in.
In addition, ask whether there is an internal or external registration of the business, director or ultimate beneficial owner. Not every registration relates to the same person or has the same scope. A request by the company does not automatically remove a personal registration of the director. Map out the decisions and the legal entities involved separately.
Who speaks on behalf of the business?
With a business account, contacts with the accountant, bookkeeper, director and bank adviser sometimes become intertwined. Therefore appoint one contact person who checks the answers and communicates on behalf of the correct legal entity. A statement about the turnover of one company does not help if the bank is asking questions about transactions of another group company.
In the case of a group, prepare a simple overview of the companies involved, their activities and intra-group payments. Link each transaction discussed to a specific invoice, loan agreement or other genuine legal basis. Also describe why the payment was made via this account. Avoid explanations after the event that do not match the records.
An accountant can explain financial data, but does not thereby take over the legal dispute about the termination. A lawyer can assess the termination and the procedural options, but must be able to rely on verifiable facts regarding the money flows. Agree who collects which documents and jointly keep track of the date stated by the bank. This division of tasks prevents everyone from waiting for someone else’s answer while the account is about to close.
Substantiating business continuity when an account is terminated
Show which payments to staff, suppliers, the tax authorities and customers depend on the account. Add specific dates and amounts. Describe which alternatives have been examined and why switching takes time.
A business does not automatically have the same statutory right to a basic payment account as a consumer. However, the special position of banks may be relevant to access to payment services; see ECLI:NL:HR:2021:1652. The circumstances of your business remain decisive.
At the same time, ask which information is still holding up a Wwft investigation. An interest in continuity does not replace the obligation to answer relevant questions carefully. Also read about termination of credit.
Frequently asked questions
Is my bv entitled to a basic payment account
The statutory right to a basic payment account is aimed at consumers and does not apply in the same way to a private limited company (bv). However, in certain circumstances an obligation to provide access to a business account may follow from the social position of banks and the specific balancing of interests.
Can a bank refuse an entire sector?
A bank assesses risks and its acceptance policy, but must observe its statutory duties and the relevant circumstances. Ask for the specific reason for your rejection and the options for managing risks. A reference to your sector does not automatically answer all questions about your file.
May I use a director’s private account?
That is not automatically a suitable or permitted solution. Bank terms and conditions, ownership of the money, record-keeping and liability may cause problems. First examine whether an account in the name of the business or another lawful temporary solution is possible.
Must the bank also allow cash deposits?
Not automatically. An interest in having a payment account does not mean a right to every facility. The risks of cash deposits may be assessed differently from ordinary non-cash payments. So describe which functions are genuinely necessary.
Can my accountant solve the problem?
An accountant or bookkeeper can help clarify the records and money flows. That does not always answer legal questions about the termination, the terms and conditions and the procedure. Financial and legal substantiation can complement each other.
How quickly must I act after a termination letter?
Start immediately with building your file, answering questions and looking into alternatives. Note the end date and the next essential payment. A complaint or an application to another bank does not automatically suspend that end date.
Have the account functions you need assessed
In a dispute with your bank, Arslan Advocaten can assess the refusal, your business activities and possible next steps. Provide the bank’s letter, the organisational structure, the relevant records and the payment schedule. Discuss in advance which work and costs are appropriate for your business file.
Further reading on this topic
- Business loan not repaid: what can you do?
- Business loan with a negative BKR credit registration
- Refused after a credit check: BKR, a commercial credit agency or an automated decision?
Sources and legal basis
- Supreme Court, 5 November 2021, ING and Yin Yang.
- Wwft, Articles 3 and 5.
- DNB (De Nederlandsche Bank) on customer due diligence.
- Kifid rules, including jurisdiction for small businesses.
Sources checked on 16 September 2026. The example response is for illustration only.
