Concept
Nodabank Corporation is an offshore bank in the Commonwealth of Dominica. The Financial Services Unit (FSU) register lists it as an Offshore Bank at 40 Kennedy Avenue, Roseau; the company was incorporated on 24 January 2023 under registration number 2023/C0008 (GLEIF record).
In its product programme for Q4 2026 (Edition 17, 13 October 2026) the bank trades as British Atlantic Bank. The programme says an application to change the legal name has been filed and is pending, and that contracts and payment details carry the name Nodabank Corporation. The trading name does not indicate UK authorisation: the contracting entity is a Dominica company. The programme is a document issued to professional clients and is not published on the bank's website.
The programme presents the bank as the banking platform of the private.ventures club, identifies its clients as professional investors, international entrepreneurs and financial institutions, and excludes retail clients. The bank's public website, nodabank.com, still offers fully remote onboarding for personal and business accounts. Under the programme one relationship manager coordinates a client, the client's family and their companies, while each account holder keeps separate ownership and signing powers and undergoes its own due diligence.
The programme lists named accounts, payments in several currencies, custody of securities, digital assets and metal, stablecoin conversion, credit against cash collateral, letters of credit, guarantees and escrow, trust services and fund accounts; which of them a client receives, and on what limits, is agreed when the bank approves the client. Cash balances and deposits are unsecured claims on an offshore bank without deposit insurance, and the balance-sheet figures in the programme are the bank's own and not backed by published audited statements.
Admission runs through a referral: from a club member, from a licensed financial institution that holds an up-to-date client profile, or from a practising lawyer who acts for the client. One onboarding fee of €2,250 covers the structure of a family and its companies, and the programme targets 3–5 business days from receipt of a complete file. Referral and payment do not guarantee approval, and the programme publishes no country or nationality policy.
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Legal entity | Nodabank Corporation, Dominica, No. 2023/C0008, LEI 254900J4G9UUPL34I825 |
| Licence | Offshore Bank, Financial Services Unit of Dominica |
| Trading name | British Atlantic Bank (legal name change pending) |
| Clients | Professional investors, entrepreneurs, financial institutions; no retail under the programme |
| Admission | By referral; €2,250 one-off per structure; 3–5 business days |
| Deposit protection | No deposit insurance or compensation scheme |
| Status as at | 14 October 2026; terms per the Q4 2026 programme, which is not public |
How the bank is built: three balances, two legal positions
The programme organises client money by purpose. Settlement balances are the liquid reserve for payments; the bank states that it holds them in high-quality liquid assets and calls the model "full-reserve settlement banking". The programme does not define the term or state what share of settlement balances is held in such assets. Legally a settlement balance is a claim on the bank.
Term deposits form the second layer of claims. According to the programme, 12-month deposits fund Lombard facilities and 24-month deposits fund bank infrastructure, and "deposits are exposed to the bank's credit risk". Custody assets — securities, digital assets, allocated metal — are the only layer that can remain the client's property. According to the programme, the bank keeps them in separate owner-level records together with any encumbrances and does not use them for lending; the custody agreement and the bank's contractual set-off right determine how far that separation protects the client.
For pricing the programme adds up the cash, deposits and cash collateral of all individuals and companies in a structure; custody assets are excluded. Ownership and signing powers stay separate for each account holder.
The bank reports a balance sheet of over $38 million for Q4 2026 and sets a target of $62 million for Q3 2027. The programme's "Club Treasury" page states that $30 million a month of liquidity is allocated for members' Lombard drawdowns and OTC transactions in 2026–2027, without stating where that liquidity comes from. These are the bank's own figures: the bank does not publish audited financial statements on its website or in the programme, and the programme describes its proof of reserves as a point-in-time reconciliation that "is not an audit or a guarantee of repayment".
A worked transaction: a USD facility with stablecoin settlement
The settlement credit facility uses all three layers at once. It is a 12-month USD facility from $500,000, secured by cash collateral, with drawdowns from $100,000 that can be converted to or from USDC and USDT held in a Fireblocks wallet. The facility runs in four stages:
- Collateral. The client places cash collateral as a separate 12-month deposit at 11.75% a year; loan-to-value, haircut and tenor are agreed before any drawdown.
- Drawdown. The bank issues a USD facility agreement for the receiving bank; the loan interest rate is agreed separately for each facility.
- Conversion. A drawdown is converted between USD and USDC/USDT at 0.75% per payment cycle, or 0% for a structure with an aggregate balance of $1 million or more; a settlement agreement records the token, network, address, rate and transaction hash.
- Repayment and release. Repayment of the credit is separate from withdrawal of collateral. Collateral free of facility obligations can be withdrawn early with a 3% charge immediately or a 1% charge on 30 days' notice; held to maturity, it is repaid in full with 11.75% a year interest and no deduction.
The cash collateral sits in the deposit layer, the tokens in the custody layer and the payments in the settlement layer, and each leg is documented. The facility agreement gives a receiving bank a document it can review; it does not change where the funds came from, and the programme states that statutory disclosure obligations continue to apply.
How client assets are protected
Protection depends on which layer an asset sits in, and each layer has a different legal treatment.
Cash. A settlement balance or a term deposit is a claim on Nodabank Corporation. Dominica offers no deposit insurance or compensation scheme for it: the bank's own website terms state that there is no banking ombudsman or financial compensation scheme in the Commonwealth of Dominica.
The deposit insurance agreement of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union, signed in July 2024, is not yet in force — it takes effect only when the last member state ratifies — and once in force it would cover banks licensed under the Banking Act, not offshore banks. The FSU's list of non-compliant institutions shows how the risk can materialise: in July 2025 the FSU added another bank, Banfers Bank Inc., to the list for failure to meet obligations to depositors.
The Bank Account Agreement published on nodabank.com in March 2024 keeps any right of set-off or general lien the bank has at law and adds a contractual right: the bank may apply money in any account and currency, and client assets held with an affiliate, against debts owed to the bank or its affiliates, converting between fiat and crypto at its discretion. The agreement is governed by Dominica law, with disputes referred to Roseau, Dominica, and allows the bank to amend its terms, including charges. The website does not say whether this agreement governs accounts opened under the programme.
Securities and metal. According to the programme, securities settle delivery-versus-payment into a custody account that records the instrument, the custodian, encumbrances and income. Execution follows the account holder's instruction; discretionary management needs a separate mandate, and so does any reuse of the assets or their use to generate yield.
Where a third-party custodian holds the assets, the client's position also depends on the bank's records and on that custodian, and the published account agreement limits the bank's liability to its own fraud, wilful default or gross negligence. Allocated metal is identified by bar number, while a metal account is a claim on the bank.
Digital assets. According to the programme, wallets run on Fireblocks multi-party computation (MPC) signing technology, with an isolated signing environment, a policy engine that separates initiation from approval, and address and transaction screening, including sanctions, before each transfer. The programme presents Fireblocks as the technology provider and does not name the custodian; each trade confirmation names it. The published account agreement places all risk of cryptocurrency transfer, storage and custody on the client.
Dominica's Virtual Asset Business Regulations 2024 require a registered virtual-asset business to hold client assets for the client, outside the claims of its creditors, but that rule binds registrants only and Nodabank is not registered. For each wallet, the custody agreement signed for it determines the client's position.
Products by client segment
The programme groups its products into three segments, each answering a different question: where a family holds capital, how a group of companies makes payments, and how a regulated or platform business can build its own products on the bank.
Private clients
Term deposits; the settlement credit facility; securities (delivery-versus-payment), digital assets and precious metals with custody records; a family office desk coordinating lawyers and tax advisers; trust and registered-holder services.
Business
Group treasury with separate accounts per company and a consolidated position in USD, EUR, GBP, HKD and CNH; local payment systems; payment flows for Hong Kong–China trade; back-to-back lending against owner collateral; club deals; letters of credit, guarantees and escrow; private-label funds.
Financial institutions
Partner-branded deposits, custody and covered guarantees; a settlement centre for payment partners; own-account trading limits backed by collateral; card programmes shown only as illustrative designs; a settlement stablecoin programme (pre-launch); API and MCP access.
Contracts carry the legal name Nodabank Corporation, but the programme does not name the trustee, the club-deal vehicle or the fund administrator. The programme's relationship-management contact is at private.ventures, and the due diligence for admission is carried out by two external firms named in the programme, a law firm and a family office, before the bank's own approval.
For trading groups the programme lists USD (ACH, Fedwire, SWIFT), EUR (SEPA, SEPA Instant, T2), GBP (Faster Payments, CHAPS, Bacs), HKD and CNH (CHATS, CIPS, local transfer) and SGD (FAST, GIRO, MEPS), with the route, value date and total cost confirmed before each instruction. It does not name the intermediary for each currency, and the bank's website terms state that its products depend on securing and maintaining correspondent banking facilities and may be unavailable in some markets.
The programme names its market and payment infrastructure — among them Kraken, DBS, InCore Bank, SIX, Sygnum, Fireblocks, ClearBank and OpenPayd — without stating the contract behind each name; the confirmation of each trade identifies the executing party, market and custodian.
The programme lists Telegram, WhatsApp, an API and MCP as channels to the relationship manager, with every instruction recorded in a central log; payments are still approved by an authorised signatory under the company's mandate. According to the programme, online banking at online.nodabank.com offers two-step verification, payment templates, bulk payments and multi-user approvals.
Tariffs
The programme prices the core cycle — receipt, conversion and onward payment — as one transaction and waives the bank's own commission for a client structure whose cash, deposits and cash collateral reach $1 million. The programme includes accounts, securities, crypto and metal transactions, basic custody, reporting, family office and concierge services without a separate charge.
| Service | Rate | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Due diligence and onboarding | €2,250 | Once per family and company structure |
| Payment and conversion cycle | 0.75% | On the cycle amount, including USDC/USDT |
| Club tariff | 0% | Aggregate balance from $1 million |
| Term deposit, 12 months | 11.75% a year | From $500,000; interest quarterly |
| Term deposit, 24 months | 17% a year | From $500,000; 50% may be withdrawn after 12 months |
| Portfolio management | 1% a year | Minimum $1,500 a quarter; portfolio from $500,000; no performance fee |
Interest on deposits accrues on a 30/360 basis without compounding. On the 24-month deposit, half of the original principal can be withdrawn after month 12 on 30 days' notice without deduction, and the remainder keeps earning 17%. On $500,000 that option produces $127,500 of interest and $627,500 of total payments over two years. No interest is paid on withdrawn amounts, and top-ups, other early withdrawals and automatic renewal of term deposits are not included in the schedule.
All deposits, including those pledged as collateral, are capped at $30 million outstanding. The waiver removes the bank's margin only: correspondent, network and third-party charges remain payable, and the 3% and 1% charges for early withdrawal of facility collateral are not waived.
Investments and structures: 6 items
| Service | Rate | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Debt, equity, acquisitions | 2%, minimum $20,000 | Transaction value; $10,000 advance credited |
| Bonds, syndication | $25,000 + 0.50% | Placement amount, replacing 2% |
| Firm commitment underwriting | 0.50%, minimum $10,000 | Underwriting risk priced separately |
| Project company / fund formation | $15,000 / $25,000 | Administration $12,000 / $24,000 a year |
| Direct investment transaction | 0.75%, minimum $2,500 | Asset purchase price |
| Club deal | 2% + 20% | 2% of capital; 20% of realised profit after return of capital |
Trust and registered-holder services, shelf companies and external legal and tax services are quoted separately.
Letters of credit, guarantees and escrow: 7 items
| Instrument | Rate | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Guarantee / SBLC | 0.50% + 1% a year | Arrangement minimum $2,500; 1% a year risk charge with full cover, minimum $1,000, at least 3 months |
| Letter of credit | 0.50%, minimum $2,500 | Issuance only; risk, deferred payment, confirmation and partial cover priced separately |
| Counter-guarantee | 0.50%, minimum $2,500 | Face amount; local guarantor charges separate |
| Collection, aval, acceptance | 0.25%, minimum $250 | Collections capped at $2,500 |
| Advising / amendment | $250 / $150 | Per action |
| Escrow, first 90 days | 0.50%, minimum $1,000 | From $100,000; one USD payment included |
| Escrow extension | 0.10%, minimum $250 | Each commenced 30-day period |
A fully covered $1 million guarantee for one year costs $15,000 in bank fees: $5,000 arrangement and $10,000 risk charge.
Partner programmes: 6 items
| Programme | Set-up | Running charge |
|---|---|---|
| Banking platform / API | $25,000 | $2,000 a month; extra integration $5,000 |
| Card programme (illustrative; issuer not named) | $15,000 | $50 issuance + $10 a month per card |
| Merchant acquiring | $1,000 per merchant | 0.50 pp above processing; chargeback $30 |
| Electronic money | $25,000 | $1,500 a month + 0.10% on issuance and redemption |
| Settlement stablecoin (pre-launch) | $50,000 | $3,000 a month + 0.10% on issuance and redemption |
| Interbank facility | 0.25% of the limit | Minimum $2,500; interest under the credit agreement |
Cash collateral under a programme serves as security and is not part of the price. Scheme, processor and third-party costs are disclosed separately.
Licence, regulation and limits
Licence and supervisor
An Offshore Bank on the FSU register is a bank licensed under the Offshore Banking Act 1996, and since the Financial Services Unit Act 2008 the FSU licenses and supervises such banks. The register publishes the entity type, address and website; it shows no licence number, date or endorsements for any entity. The bank's website names the FSU as its licensing authority and does not name the statute.
Trust services and virtual assets
The programme offers trust and registered-holder services without naming the entity that acts as trustee, and the register does not show whether Nodabank's licence carries a trust endorsement.
The Virtual Asset Business Act 2022 prohibits offering or operating virtual-asset business in or from Dominica without registration. Nodabank does not appear on the FSU's virtual-asset register, which lists three entities. The programme offers OTC trading, transfers and custody of digital assets, and nodabank.com advertises an in-house crypto OTC desk and partnerships with digital-asset brokers; the programme adds that each confirmation names the executing party and custodian, but neither source names a registered entity that performs these services. In May 2025 the FSU directed offshore banks not to call themselves crypto banks or imply crypto authorisation beyond their licence.
UK and EU rules
The programme cites UK and EU rules — the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, MiFID II, PSD2, MiCA, AIFMD — mostly with qualifiers such as "where MiFID II applies" or "in the EU". These references describe how the bank fits a counterparty's regime; they place Nodabank under neither the FCA nor an EU supervisor. Three points set the limits of what a counterparty can do with the bank:
| Point | Consequence for Nodabank |
|---|---|
| UK authorisation | Absent from the Bank of England's list of PRA-regulated banks; the trading name confers no UK status |
| EBA Q&A 2023_6882 | An EU payment institution cannot safeguard client funds at Nodabank: only EU or EEA credit institutions qualify |
| MiCA, Article 48 | A USD-referenced stablecoin offered in the EU is an e-money token; its issuer must be an EU credit institution or e-money institution |
For a stablecoin issued under a client's own brand, the programme refers to a "designated issuer" without naming one.
Announced products and unconfirmed data
The settlement stablecoin is not yet live: it is designed to be USD-backed and redeemable 1:1, but its holder rights, reserve composition and permitted markets are to be "defined before launch", and the programme names no issued token. The personal and corporate cards appear only as illustrative designs; the issuer, benefits and limits are left to the issuing programme, and no issuer is named.
The programme states that a group acquired 100% of the bank in 2026 and that the legal name change is pending, without naming the acquiring group, its jurisdiction or its ultimate owners. The FSU register, GLEIF and nodabank.com still show Nodabank, and GLEIF, last updated in April 2026, records the bank as controlled by natural persons with no parent entity. The public website also still describes the earlier positioning — a global offshore bank with fully remote onboarding for personal and business accounts — while the Q4 2026 programme is referral-only and closed to retail clients.
Where Nodabank fits among comparable banks
The closest peers are the other Dominica offshore banks, compared in the Dominica offshore banks overview, and the regulated digital-asset banks in Switzerland and Gibraltar. They differ first of all in what protects the cash.
| Bank | Licence | Cash protection | Products (examples) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nodabank (British Atlantic Bank) | Offshore Bank, FSU Dominica | None; credit risk of the bank | Per the Q4 2026 programme: term deposits, stablecoin-settled credit facility, LCs, escrow, trust services |
| EQIBank | Offshore Bank, FSU Dominica | None; no statutory scheme for offshore banks; FSU enhanced supervision since June 2026 after a US seizure of dollar funds it says are its own | Accounts, custody, escrow, crypto- and securities-backed loans |
| Sygnum | Bank, FINMA | esisuisse up to CHF 100,000 | Crypto custody, BTC Lombard loans |
| AMINA Bank | Bank, FINMA | esisuisse up to CHF 100,000 | Fixed-term deposits, crypto custody and lending |
| Xapo Bank | Bank, GFSC Gibraltar | Gibraltar scheme up to £120,000 equivalent, fiat only | Bitcoin-backed loans through group company Xapo Credit Limited |
The Swiss and Gibraltar banks give statutory deposit cover up to a fixed limit; neither Dominica bank offers statutory cover, so a depositor there bears the bank's credit risk in full. Nodabank's programme combines trade finance, stablecoin settlement, term deposits, family-office coordination and fund accounts under one relationship manager for professional clients. Protection regimes are compared in the client asset protection map, and liquidity against collateral in Lombard lending.
Q/A
Status and licence
Are Nodabank and British Atlantic Bank the same bank?
Yes. British Atlantic Bank is the trading name in the bank's Q4 2026 programme; the legal entity is Nodabank Corporation, Dominica registration 2023/C0008. The legal name change is pending, and contracts and payment details use Nodabank Corporation.
Is British Atlantic Bank regulated in the United Kingdom?
No. The bank holds an offshore banking licence from the Financial Services Unit of Dominica and is not on the Bank of England's list of PRA-regulated banks. The word "British" in the trading name does not indicate FCA or PRA authorisation.
Does Nodabank hold a crypto licence?
No. Nodabank does not appear on the FSU's virtual-asset business register, although the programme and the bank's website offer digital-asset services and refer to executing parties and brokers without naming a registered entity. The FSU has barred offshore banks from presenting themselves as crypto banks.
Is account information reported to the account holder's tax authority?
In most cases, yes. Dominica exchanges financial account information under CRS with partner jurisdictions that have activated an exchange relationship — its first actual exchanges took place in 2021 — and reports US persons under its Model 1 FATCA agreement, in force since 12 August 2019. The mechanics are explained in the CRS overview.
Money and protection
Are deposits insured?
No. The bank's own terms confirm that Dominica has no compensation scheme, and the Eastern Caribbean deposit insurance agreement is not yet in force and would cover only Banking Act licensees. The published account agreement also gives the bank a right of set-off.
Why are the deposit rates 11.75% and 17%?
According to the programme, 12-month deposits fund the bank's Lombard lending and 24-month deposits fund bank infrastructure. The programme does not explain how the rates are set; the deposit is an unsecured claim on an offshore bank with a self-reported balance sheet of over $38 million and no deposit insurance.
What happens to securities and crypto if the bank fails?
The programme states that custody assets sit in separate owner-level records and are not used for lending; whether the bank holds a given asset for the client is decided by the custody agreement for it. Where a third-party custodian holds the assets, the published account agreement limits the bank's liability to its own fraud, wilful default or gross negligence. For crypto, the general account agreement places custody risk on the client, and the 2024 client-asset rule applies only to registered virtual-asset businesses.
Admission and tariffs
Who can open an account?
Under the Q4 2026 programme, professional investors, entrepreneurs and financial institutions referred by a club member, a licensed financial institution or the client's lawyer; retail clients are not accepted. Each account holder undergoes due diligence, including source of funds and wealth. The public website still advertises remote onboarding for personal accounts.
How much does onboarding cost and how long does it take?
€2,250 once for a family and its companies, with unlimited linked accounts. The target is 3–5 business days from a complete file; further checks can extend it.
When are payments free of the bank's commission?
When the client structure holds an aggregate balance of $1 million or more in cash, deposits and cash collateral, with each amount counted once in USD; custody assets do not count. Third-party and network charges remain.