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Premium LEI Service in the United Kingdom
Apply, renew or transfer your LEI code now
Latest LEI registrationsSelect the plan that suits you best
£49 / year
- Same day LEI
- GLEIF fee included
- Automatic Application
- Pricier option
Total: £49
What is an LEI?
- A Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) is a 20-character identifier that represents a distinct legal entity engaged in financial transactions. LEI is a unique identification code based on the global ISO 17442 standard. Each LEI contains well structured reference data which is categorized into 2 sections – Level 1 – who is who and Level 2 – who owns whom.
- LEI connects financial markets, companies and regulators. LEI’s are in use worldwide among different jurisdictions. The USA and European Union were the first to adapt LEI in financial reporting. The system has been designed for public and private partnership to improve transparency in financial data systems and to collate financial transaction information into a easily accessible global system.
- An LEI can only be issued by a Local Operating Unit (LOU). A LOU is an organisation that has been accredited by GLEIF to issue LEIs in accordance with the protocols established by GLEIF.
- The Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF) is tasked to support the implementation and use of the LEIs.
What is the cost of an LEI?
- GLEIF fee – Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation charges 11 USD for each active LEI annually.
- LOU (LEI issuer) cost to get accredited by the GLEIF. This involves significant legal and IT development costs.
- Reference data fee – The collected data for validating Legal Entity reference data does not come without cost. The costs vary among jurisdictions but on average they are around £5 per LEI per year.
- Human costs – As the Legal Entity reference data is not always computer readable we have to employ humans who work with the data.
- Customer service costs – we, humans, like to get support from fellow humans. Therefore we have to employ good people to help to answer our customers questions.
- Costs to keep up the team, office, servers, IT development.
- Small premium for the work we do.
LEI Number Structure Explained
Legal Entity Identifier number is standardised ISO 17442 standard. An LEI consists of a 20-character alphanumeric string
1 2 3 4
LOU ID
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
UNIQUE CHARACTERS FOR YOUR COMPANY
19 20
CHECKING CHARACTERS
The LEI is ISO standardised code which brings transparency to global financial market place. Each LEI contains well-structured reference data which is categorized into 2 sections – Level 1 – who is who and Level 2 – who owns whom.
An LEI number enables identifying legal entities participating in global financial markets for various supervisory purposes.
An LEI is needed by any legal entity whose activities incorporate financial transactions.
LEI codes are issued by LOUs (Local Operating Units). Accredited LOUs offer registration, renewal and other services for legal entities wishing to obtain an LEI.
Why do we have to pay for an LEI and how is the price for such a simple thing justified? Here is how the price comes together:
- GLEIF fee – Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation charges £10 (11 USD) for each active LEI annually.
- LOU (LEI issuer) cost to get accredited by the GLEIF. This involves significant legal and IT development costs.
- Reference data fee – The collected data for validating Legal Entity reference data does not come without cost. The costs vary among jurisdictions but on average they are around £5 per LEI per year.
- Human costs – As the Legal Entity reference data is not always computer readable we have to employ humans who work with the data.
- Customer service costs – we, humans, like to get support from fellow humans. Therefore we have to employ good people to help to answer our customers questions.
- Costs to keep up the team, office, servers, IT development.
- Small premium for the work we do.
You can see our pricing at the Prices section
We accept credit card payments (VISA, MASTERCARD, AMEX, MAESTRO) and payments by bank transfer.
Normally it takes between 1 to 24 hours from the moment of payment to complete the application.
In order to maintain high quality, relevant and trustworthy data, the LEI must be renewed each year.
LEI related company data is accessible to everyone through the GLEIF website.
LEI transfer is the act of moving an LEI code from the management of one service provider to another. An LEI can be transferred without renewing it.
LEI renewal is the annual update of the registration data related to a legal entity in the GLEIF database. The data related to an entity has to be updated at least once a year.
If LEI renewal is done using a service provider that is not the current manager of the LEI code, the LEI must also be transferred under their management.
Thus it is possible to only transfer or renew an LEI code or do both with the same application.
A lapsed LEI or not having one may prevent you from successfully completing a transaction with securities or reporting.
