Corporate Authorised Representative Services

An authorised representative appointment for wholesale fund managers and corporate advisers.

Who we work with

• Fund managers
• Property funds
• Private credit funds
• Private equity
• Venture capital
• ESVCLPs
• Syndicates
• Family offices
• Fintechs
• Corporate advisers

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Run your fund, skip the application

Everything a wholesale fund manager needs to operate – the authorised representative appointment, bespoke compliance monitoring, review software and processes – plus services to round out your regulatory stack.

Authorised representative appointment

Your company is appointed a Corporate Authorised Representative of our AFSL – authorised to provide general advice to wholesale clients and to deal in interests in your scheme, the dealing authorisation that lets you accept applications and process redemptions.

Outsourced compliance

Your compliance framework, monitoring and regulatory reporting run by the licensee – obligations tracked, breaches managed and the annual review handled, giving you peace of mind.

Add-on services

• Trustee Services
• Administration Services

How onboarding works

Live in three to four weeks

You start one conversation. We carry the process and the documentation from there.

Indicative timing – depends on complete information.

1. Step 01: Tell us about your business

   Discovery · 1–2 days

   You provide: Send us an enquiry with an overview of your business, proposed financial services and expected activities.

   We provide: A director reviews your enquiry and replies within one business day.

   Deliverable: A director call booked

2. Step 02: Understanding your business requirements

   Intake call · Week 1

   You provide: Talk us through your business model, financial services, target clients and proposed activities.

   We provide: We identify the authorisations and appointment structure you may require, explain our requirements and outline the indicative costs.

   Deliverable: Proposed scope and fee estimate

3. Step 03: We build your documentation

   Setup · Weeks 1–3

   You provide: Complete our due diligence requirements and provide information about your business, ownership, key people, experience and proposed activities.

   We provide: We assess your application, confirm the approved financial services and prepare the CAR agreement and onboarding requirements.

   Deliverable: CAR agreement ready for signing

   What we assess

   • Business and ownership
   • Experience and capability
   • Activities and compliance

4. Step 04: We register your appointment with ASIC

   ASIC · Weeks 3–4

   You provide: Sign the CAR agreement and complete any outstanding onboarding requirements.

   We provide: We lodge the appointment with ASIC and confirm that your authorised representative details have been recorded.

   Deliverable: Your CAR number issued

5. Step 05: You are ready to commence

   Go live · Weeks 4–6

   You provide: Complete any final conditions and submit your initial marketing materials for approval.

   We provide: We complete your induction, confirm your approved activities and activate your compliance and reporting access.

   Deliverable: Authorised to commence

6. Step 06: Compliance support that continues

   Ongoing · Monthly+

   You provide: Keep us informed, maintain required records and complete regular reporting, training and attestations.

   We provide: Ongoing compliance guidance, monitoring and reviews to help you operate within your approved authorisations.

   Deliverable: Ongoing oversight and support

In the client portal

Efficient technology, expert judgement

A purpose-built client portal: every obligation we track, dated, assigned and reviewed by a named person.

• Everything assigned: Each obligation carries an owner and a date, so nothing sits in a shared inbox waiting for someone to claim it.
• Registers kept live: Authorised representatives, marketing approvals, breaches, conflicts and client certificates held as live registers, each entry approved and dated.
• Guides and templates to hand: Disclaimer guides, IM wording, policies and certificates in one resource library, the current version.

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AFSL questions, answered

Licensing basics

Do I need my own AFSL to start a wholesale fund, or can I operate under someone else’s?

You don’t need your own licence to get started. As a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR) under FundPro’s AFSL, you can manage and promote your fund to wholesale investors legally – without going through a full licence application yourself. Many fund managers start this way and obtain their own AFSL later as they scale.

What is a Corporate Authorised Representative?

A CAR is a company appointed by an AFSL holder to provide specified financial services under that licence. You operate under FundPro’s licence and compliance umbrella, meaning you can run your fund while FundPro manages the regulatory obligations of being the licensee.

What’s the difference between a CAR arrangement and applying for my own AFSL?

Becoming a CAR is faster (typically 4–6 weeks), lower cost, and requires less organisational infrastructure. Applying for your own AFSL is a more involved process – ASIC requires demonstrated organisational competency, a Responsible Manager, adequate financial resources, and a compliance framework. Most emerging managers start as CARs and transition to their own licence once they have the AUM and team to support it.

Scope, investors & documents

What asset classes can I manage under FundPro’s AFSL?

A licence doesn’t authorise asset classes – it authorises specified financial services in relation to specified classes of financial product. Bolt Capital Pty Ltd (AFSL 522572) is authorised to provide financial product advice on, and to deal in, interests in managed investment schemes (excluding investor directed portfolio services), securities, derivatives, government debentures, stocks and bonds, and deposit products – and to operate custodial or depository services – in each case to wholesale clients. What matters for your fund is the product your investors will hold and the services you will provide in relation to it. For most wholesale funds that product is an interest in a managed investment scheme – units in a unit trust – and the underlying assets can be property, loans, equities or unlisted holdings without changing it, because direct property and loans are not financial products in their own right. We confirm the authorisations that apply to your strategy at scoping.

Can I run an ESVCLP or VCLP under your AFSL?

Yes – operating an early stage venture capital limited partnership means providing financial services (managing the partnership, dealing in its investments and raising from partners), so you need access to an AFSL to do it. A CAR appointment under our licence gives you that. Note the two approvals are separate and we provide only one of them: the partnership itself is registered by Industry Innovation and Science Australia under the Venture Capital Act 2002, which is where the tax concessions come from, and that registration – along with the investment-plan and eligible-investment conditions attached to it – remains yours to obtain and maintain. We cover the licensing side so you can operate once registered.

Who can I market my fund to?

Wholesale clients only – you cannot market to retail investors under a wholesale structure. The most common route is net assets of at least $2.5 million, or gross income of at least $250,000 in each of the last two financial years, evidenced by a certificate from a qualified accountant that is valid for two years. Separate limbs also cover investments of at least $500,000 in the product, professional investors such as licensees and large superannuation funds, and sophisticated investors assessed by a licensee. This is a summary only: the correct test must be identified and the evidence held for each investor before any offer is made.

Do I need a trustee as well as an AFSL?

Yes. The trustee holds fund assets on trust for investors. FundPro can act as both the AFSL licensee (through the CAR arrangement) and the corporate trustee – one counterparty, one set of documents and one point of contact instead of three. You should also understand what that concentration means: because the same entity is licensee, trustee and administrator, checks that would otherwise sit between separate organisations sit inside one. We will talk you through how the roles are managed and documented before you engage. Some managers prefer an unrelated trustee for exactly that reason, and we will tell you if that’s the better fit for your investor base.

What is an Information Memorandum and do I need one?

An Information Memorandum (IM) is the primary disclosure document for wholesale investors. It sets out your fund’s strategy, risks, fees, and key terms. While not legally mandated for all wholesale structures, it is standard practice and expected by investors. FundPro assists in reviewing the IM as part of the setup process.

Can I raise capital before the fund is formally established?

No. You must have the correct licensing and fund structure in place before making any offers to investors or accepting capital. Operating without an AFSL or outside the scope of an authorisation carries serious civil and criminal penalties.

AFSL ready when you are

Ready to launch your fund? Let’s get you licensed

Arrange a 30-minute AFSL fit call with a director.

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