More financial institutions, fintechs, telecoms in Africa are tapping on Smile ID’s innovative KYC solutions, as the company announced that it had surpassed 200 million identity verification checks.
- •Less than a year ago, Smile ID crossed 100 million identity verifications and the rapid pace of growth has been a testament to the rising demand for secure and compliant verification processes by tech-driven businesses.
- •For over seven years, Smile ID has empowered businesses to combat fraud and establish trust in the digital economy by offering services such as document verification and biometric authentication.
- •Smile ID’s portfolio of clients include Flutterwave, Fairmoney, Binance, Uber, Bolt, Kuda Bank, Opay, Paystack, Luno, and Yellowcard.
“Reaching 200 million identity verifications is a remarkable milestone, one that reflects the trust our clients place in us and the growing demand for scalable identity solutions across Africa. It took us 7 years to achieve our first 100 million checks – we’ve now doubled in just 11 months”, Mark Straub, CEO of Smile ID said.
The company has a strong presence in Nigeria, where financial institutions are under pressure from authorities to institute KYC requirements. In April this year, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) mandated financial institutions to demand customers’ Bank Verification Numbers and National Identification Numbers (NIN) before opening accounts.
Although these directives were criticized for potentially stunting financial inclusion in Nigeria, they presented an opportunity for Smile ID to streamline the onboarding process of fintech customers while also adhering to set guidelines of identity verification. The company intends to replicate its success in identity verification and management in other African countries, notably South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia.
“This rapid growth also highlights the increasing role of digital identity in daily life. Beyond powering onboarding, our SmartSelfie™ technology now protects millions of high-value transactions with instant AI-powered face authentication,” Straub said.
According to the latest Identity Fraud Report 2024 by Sumsub, Nigeria had the highest identity fraud rate in Africa in 2024, at 5.91%, followed by Algeria, Tanzania, Madagascar and Chad. Kenya was ranked ninth. Rapid technological innovation also leads to increasingly sophisticated online crimes.
Countering fraud in the modern world requires proprietary machine learning algorithms and a technology platform that caters for all skin tones and entry-level devices. Smile ID believes it has built a powerful verification tool that is reliable in Africa’s nascent fintech sector.
