LEI for an interactive investor Business Account

Checked on 14 November 2026 Independent guide

interactive investor (ii) asks for the Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) at the very start: a limited company must hold a valid LEI before it begins the application for an ii Business Account.

What interactive investor asks for

  • Companies investing in shares, funds, bonds and other securities need an LEI.
  • A valid LEI is needed before applying: ii’s eligibility answer says the company must have one before starting an application.
  • The Business Account is for limited companies registered in the UK. ii says the company must be a UK tax-paying entity and must not be a financial institution.
  • The LEI can come from a provider accredited by the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF).
  • With an LEI, ii says, a limited company can invest in another company by buying its shares.

This is an independent guide: interactive investor has not reviewed or endorsed it. It summarises what interactive investor publishes on its own website, as read on 14 November 2026. If the two differ, the firm’s own page applies.

Legal basis

  • Under UK MiFIR, an investment firm cannot execute a trade in shares, bonds, ETFs or other reportable instruments for a client that is eligible for an LEI and does not have one. The FCA names companies, charities and trusts among the clients this covers. FCA: UK MiFIR legal entity identifiers
  • The rule itself is short: a firm shall not provide a service that triggers a transaction report before it has the client’s LEI. RTS 22, Article 13(2), as kept in UK law
  • Under UK EMIR, both sides of a derivative contract are reported, so every UK counterparty to a derivative needs an LEI. FCA: UK EMIR reporting obligation
  • A private individual investing in their own name does not need an LEI and is identified by a national identifier instead. RTS 22, Article 6, as kept in UK law

How to apply

You are not tied to an issuer your bank or broker mentions. GLEIF, the foundation that oversees the system, says a legal entity can use any issuer accredited for its jurisdiction, in its own country or abroad. Whoever issues it, an LEI is the same 20-character code and identifies one legal entity, so one LEI serves every bank and broker the organisation uses.

LEI Universal is a registration agency, not an issuer: an LEI ordered here is issued by a GLEIF-accredited issuer.

  1. Enter the name or registration number in the application form. Where the register is connected, the details are filled in for you.
  2. Check the name, registration number and address, and state whether a parent company consolidates the entity.
  3. Confirm that you may act for the entity, then pay. If a signed authorisation is needed, you sign it online.
  4. The details are checked against the register. Once they are confirmed, the LEI is issued and sent to you by email.

An entity can only have one LEI. Check whether it already has one

Apply for an LEI

Frequently asked questions

Can I open an ii Business Account first and get the LEI later?

Not according to ii: its page says the company must have a valid LEI before starting an application.

Which companies can open an ii Business Account?

ii says the company must be registered in the UK, be a UK tax-paying entity and not be a financial institution, and that companies registered in Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man are not eligible.

Sources

Other banks and brokers

LEI by company type