The CNAD started accepting DASP applications in April 2023. Twenty months later, the registry showed 135 approved registrations. That averages roughly seven approvals per month.
But here is what the average hides. The first ten approvals took nine months each. The last ten took sixty days. The CNAD learned fast.
Today, the regulator publishes clear timeframes. Twenty business days for review. Five days to fix incomplete submissions. The process has become predictable.
Predictable does not mean easy. The six firms listed below all submitted applications during that early wave. They watched the CNAD build their processes from the ground up. That experience now saves their clients months of waiting.
1. Gofaizen & Sherle
Gofaizen & Sherle is a legal consulting firm for crypto business in El Salvador that opened its San Salvador office in early 2024. The timing coincided with the first wave of DASP applications. The CNAD was still figuring out their own document requirements. Clarification questions changed from one week to the next.
The firm kept records of every single request from the regulator. That internal database now runs through every new application before submission.
Three documented client results:
Six DASP licenses approved for Gofaizen & Sherle clients. The CNAD has issued 40 total. That puts the firm at 15% market share.
- Basal Pay came to the firm operating only in Asia. Through their legal consulting services for crypto business setup, Gofaizen & Sherle mapped a three-country route. Canada MSB first. Poland for quarterly AML reporting. El Salvador DASP as the final piece. Basal Pay now operates in Canada and is in the final approval stage for El Salvador.
- The firm’s Advanced package includes eight policy documents that the CNAD expects to see. Enterprise-Wide Risk Assessment. Business Continuity. InfoSec. Winding Down. Compliance Management. Risk Management. Safeguarding of Assets. Code of Ethics.
Local presence matters at stage three. The CNAD reviews applications in three phases. Phase one checks document completeness. Phase two reviews AML policies. Phase three asks follow-up questions. Gofaizen & Sherle’s office at Presidente Plaza sits fifteen minutes from the CNAD. When phase three questions arrive, someone delivers answers in person the same day.
This crypto license service provider charges $12,400 for BSP registration. $28,900 for full DASP. $37,200 for DASP with office and accounting.
2. COREDO
COREDO noticed a pattern among their European clients. MiCA approval takes six to eighteen months. Most crypto startups have a 12-month runway. The math does not work.
The firm built their legal service to obtain a crypto license in El Salvador as a solution. Get licensed in El Salvador in one to three months. Start generating revenue. Then wait for MiCA approval without watching the bank account drain to zero.
Package breakdown from their website:
- Basic at €16,000: company formation, standard AML/KYC policies, BSP registration
- Advanced at €37,000: adds personalized AML/KYC, local compliance officer placement, eight internal policy documents, DASP registration assistance
- Full at €47,500: adds office setup, accounting, local bank account, European EMI account with segregated B2B/B2C accounts
The 250-hour cap matters. The Advanced and Full packages include 250 hours of legal work. Additional hours cost €250 each. That means clients know the maximum bill before signing. No surprises when the CNAD asks extra questions.
This specialized crypto licensing firm has a Prague base that gives them direct access to European banking partners. The Full package includes a European EMI account with multicurrency support. Clients who want both El Salvador and EU operations deal with one firm.
3. Fast Offshore Licenses
Fast Offshore Licenses built its business on jurisdictions where pricing is the primary concern. Panama. Cayman Islands. British Virgin Islands. Their website lists prices next to every license type.
El Salvador follows the same model.
Three published price points:
- $12,400 for BSP registration
- $27,950 for Fully Operational DASP
- $36,200 for Complete DASP with office lease and accounting
The BSP tier at $12,400 covers Bitcoin services only. A payment processor that only handles BTC fits here. An exchange trading Ethereum, Solana, or any other digital asset does not. That business needs the $27,950 DASP tier.
The $36,200 Complete tier adds a one-year office lease and accounting services. The DASP license does not require a physical office. But the CNAD asks fewer follow-up questions when applicants have one. As legal consultants for crypto licensing, Fast Offshore arranges the lease so clients do not need to find commercial real estate in San Salvador on their own.
The annual cost disclosure separates them from most firms. Their website lists $4,000 to $8,000 for yearly regulatory renewal and reporting after the first year. Plus transaction monitoring tools and compliance maintenance that run $15,000 or more annually. Most firms hide these numbers until after the license is approved, but Fast Offshore’s legal crypto consulting puts them on the table upfront.
A client who signs the $27,950 DASP package knows the total first-year cost will land between $46,950 and $50,950 after adding monitoring tools and renewal fees. No surprises when the first anniversary arrives.
The Fully Operational package at $27,950 includes:
- Company formation in El Salvador
- Customized AML/KYC policy drafted by their legal team
- Compliance Officer recruitment and placement
- Support opening a corporate bank account
The Complete package at $36,200 adds everything above plus a one-year office lease agreement and accounting services, including annual report preparation.
4. Intelium Law
Intelium Law is a specialized legal firm for obtaining crypto license that reports license counts. According to their website, over 135 El Salvador crypto licenses had been granted by the end of 2024. That number comes from the CNAD public registry.
The firm noticed that most rejected applications share one problem. Incomplete documentation on first submission. The CNAD publishes a twenty-business-day review timeline. But that clock starts when the application is complete. Not when it is submitted.
Their fix is a pre-submission audit. Corporate papers checked against CNAD formatting rules. AML policies reviewed for missing risk categories. Technical documentation scanned for unclear transaction flow descriptions. The audit catches problems before the CNAD sees them.
Direct CNAD coordination is built into their service. Each active application gets assigned to a specific Intelium team member who communicates directly with the regulator, a service their lawyers for obtaining crypto license designed after dozens of submissions. When the CNAD has a question, that person answers it. The client does not get pulled into every back-and-forth exchange.
Quarterly reporting reminders keep licenses active. The CNAD expects reports every three months. The UIF expects SAR summaries. Intelium sends reminders fifteen days before each deadline.
5. Tetra Consultants
The DASP license requires two local compliance officers. One Head of Compliance. One Deputy. Both need permanent residency in El Salvador. Both need AML certification.
Most crypto lawyers and compliance teams do not have Salvadoran hiring networks. Tetra Consultants built their El Salvador practice around solving this single problem.
Credential requirements from their website: All Tetra compliance officers hold CAMS (Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist) and CCAS (Certified Crypto Asset AFC Specialist) certifications. Each has five or more years in crypto or financial services.
The five-step placement process:
- Initial discussion to understand the business model
- Engagement letter with fee structure
- Candidate profile review with resumes and qualifications
- Ongoing support, including UIF registration and regulatory communication
- End of term review with renewal or modification options
Expiration tracking prevents license suspension. The firm monitors annual AML certification renewals for every officer they place. When a certification approaches expiry, Tetra enrolls the officer in an approved course. An expired officer voids the DASP license. Tetra makes sure that never happens.
6. Adam Smith Law Firm
Adam Smith Law Firm operates out of Lithuania. Their El Salvador practice grew from client demand for faster licensing than MiCA timelines allow. The firm now offers two distinct packages for the Salvadoran market.
The BSP Package runs €19,900. It covers Bitcoin Service Provider registration for companies working exclusively with BTC. Payment processors. Custodial wallets. Bitcoin-only exchanges. The package includes company formation, documentation preparation, and regulatory submission.
The DASP + BSP Extended Package costs €29,900. This one adds full Digital Asset Service Provider compliance for multi-asset operations. Exchanges trading Ethereum, Solana, or stablecoins fall into this category. The extended package also includes compliance officer placement and ongoing regulatory support.
What makes them different:
- Fixed 12-week timeline. Adam Smith publishes their processing window at up to 12 weeks from start to finish. That includes company registration, document preparation, CNAD submission, and approval. Most firms give ranges. Adam Smith gives a number.
- No physical presence required. The firm handles the entire process remotely. They do not require clients to travel to El Salvador for document signing or regulator meetings. Local representation handles the in-country requirements.
- Dual license pathway. Clients who want both BSP and DASP coverage can apply simultaneously through Adam Smith’s extended package. The firm submits both applications in parallel. Approval for both arrives at the same time.
The lawyers for obtaining crypto license at Adam Smith have processed applications across multiple jurisdictions. Their El Salvador practice connects to a larger network that includes Lithuania, Poland, and other EU markets. Clients who want El Salvador now and Europe later stay with the same firm.
What Separates Experienced Firms from Beginners
Ask any potential partner about the RPSAD registry. The CNAD publishes two public registries. RPSAD for Digital Asset Service Providers. RPSBTC for Bitcoin Service Providers.
An experienced firm will name both registries without looking them up. They will know which one applies to your business model. They will have submitted applications to both.
A beginner firm will hesitate. Or they will guess. Or they will promise to “look into it.”
The question takes five seconds to ask. The answer tells you everything about whether the firm has actually done this work before.
Final Thoughts
The CNAD processed over 135 DASP applications in twenty months. The first approvals moved slowly. The recent ones move faster. The regulator learned. The firms that stuck around learned too.
Gofaizen & Sherle opened an office in San Salvador during the first wave. Their clients now hold six DASP licenses. COREDO built a bridge for European projects burning cash on MiCA wait times. Fast Offshore published pricing that includes annual maintenance costs. Intelium Law runs pre-submission audits and direct CNAD coordination. Tetra Consultants solves the compliance officer problem that trips up most foreign applicants. Adam Smith Law Firm offers fixed 12-week timelines and dual BSP plus DASP pathways.
Each firm has submitted applications in 2025 or 2026. Each one knows what the CNAD asks for right now.
The difference is what happens after the license arrives. Some firms disappear. Others schedule the first compliance review before the license even lands. The ones who stay involved keep their clients licensed. The ones who do not leave clients stranded when the CNAD calls with follow-up questions six months later.
Pick a firm that answers the RPSAD question correctly. Then ask what happens in month seven. The answer will tell you who to hire.