Security
How Helm protects your money, your account and your data.
Licensed partners hold the money
Helm is a financial technology company, not a bank. Client funds are held with licensed banking and money transmission partners, each regulated in the country where it operates. The partners that hold your funds and move your payments are named in your account agreement, and that list is updated in writing if it changes.
Helm does not lend client funds and does not use them for its own operations.
Every business is verified before it opens
Every client business is verified before its account opens: the company's registration, its owners and directors, the nature of its trade and the countries it trades with. The review is done by a compliance specialist from one document list, and the outcome is confirmed in writing.
The same standard applies to every business on Helm, so the counterparties you pay through Helm have been through the same check.
Payments are screened before they are sent
Each payment is screened against sanctions lists and Helm's own risk rules before it leaves the account, and each incoming payment is screened before it is credited. Most payments clear in seconds. When a payment is held for review, you receive the outcome and the reason in writing within one business day.
| Check | When | What you see |
|---|---|---|
| Sanctions and watch lists | Before every payment is sent or credited | Payment status: Screened |
| Recipient verification | When a new recipient is added | Recipient status: Verified |
| Unusual activity review | When a payment falls outside your normal pattern | Payment status: In review, with outcome in writing within one business day |
Your account, your access rules
Every user has their own login, protected by a password and a second factor. Account owners set who can view, who can create payments and who can approve them, with approval limits per user. Every action in the account is recorded with the user, the time and the device.
- Second-factor login for every user
- Approval limits by user, with a second approval for large payments
- New recipients confirmed before the first payment
- Session timeouts and device records
Your data
Account data is encrypted in transit and at rest and held in data centres in the United States and the European Union. Access inside Helm is limited to staff who need it for their role, and every access is logged. Helm does not sell client data. Full details are in the Privacy policy.
Reporting a concern
If you believe your account has been accessed without authority, or you have received a message claiming to be from Helm that you did not expect, contact your account manager or security@helm.business. Helm never asks for your password or your second-factor code by email, phone or message.