New York-based Tradle is using the blockchain to build a ‘know your customer’ (KYC) requirements network to secure both intrabank and external transfers. Current technology has moved little beyond pen and paper but the blockchain provides a secure digital infrastructure. Tradle’s system, ensures the transfer of data is verifiable. It’s about transferring trust, not assets. With KYC on blockchain, Tradle is building a global trust provisioning network to give retail, wealth, SME and institutional customers of financial institutions faster access to capital and risk allocation.

Tradle helps financial institutions to turn the pain of compliance into commercial opportunity. Today 10% to 20% of bank’s staff is allocated to the regulatory issues, which is a huge cost and slows innovation to a halt. Tradle offers banks a subscription to an app that fixes a broken KYC process in retail and corporate banking, opens a way to address other compliance problems and allows to start experimenting with the new Uber-like business models. 

How it works
It works like the Instagram for KYC. Client clicks on a link on the bank’s web site and install Tradle’s Trust in Motion (TiM) app. TiM works like a chat box on many bank sites, but now it is also on the mobile. On its first start TiM creates a blank-slate identity for the client and starts a chat with the bank’s representative. The bank’s rep asks client to verify their identity. Client uses TiM to snap a picture of their passport, license, utility bill, etc. much like they do today with the Instagram or Facebook Messenger. The bank’s rep verifies the pictures using the verification process already present at the bank.

All documents and verifications are automatically digitally signed and confidentially put on the blockchain. From this point on they are co-owned by the client and the bank. Further re-validation of identity becomes automatic. Over time, new documents can be added or reverified.

The advantages:
Every bank can access this network and eliminate the number of KYC checks that they do today. But even before the network is born, within one bank there is inter-product KYC checks; inter-divisional, inter-location, inter-subsidiary. Those KYC checks are not shared. KYC costs are very high.
A blockchain system that stores and facilitates KYC data can be extended to include anti-money laundering (AML) rules, in the form of a smart contract. The automated AML procedures thereby replace sending all data to regulators and the regulators also receive information about suspicious transactions without banks sharing a lot of raw, private data with them.

There is also potential on the wealth management side, for instance, with the onboarding of wealthy individuals by banks. Today opening an account in the bank takes several weeks. Calling the bank, scheduling an appointment, come in two weeks later, bring some documents. Tradle offers a mobile app which can be used like Snapchat: talking to the bank, snap pictures of documents, send them in a chat form to the bank, and the bank’s representative verifies those documents and the results are put on the blockchain. Individuals get a proof in hand of the fact they were verified by the bank and what exactly was verified by the bank. This initial verification can be used in all other processes where identification is needed: other banks, insurance companies, telco’s, Airbnb, or any other participant on the network.

The Tradle platform is open source enabling security audit, high speed of innovation, an advantage in government procurement. Offering pre-integrated vendor products such as biometrics, ID scanning, sanctions and PEPs checkers to provide choice and ease of deployment for institutions. They can convert KYC forms, into live data collection, data entry and KYC sharing process on web and mobile overnight which no other vendor can do.

Speed of innovation
Tradle’s blockchain based bot framework enables to build new customer interactions, customize compliance rules, and develop new consensus algorithms. Tradle takes care of all the server, network, security and app pain so the customer can concentrate on rapid business evolution.

Project partners of Tradle are Rabobank, Lloyd’s, Lloyd’s Bank, FCA and many more and they are recognized by Citi, McKinsey&Company, KPMG & FintechCity. Tradle participates in a test as part of the FCA’s Regulatory Sandbox. The regulatory sandbox allows firms to test innovative offerings in a live environment. 20 companies have been selected from 69 applicants and Tradle is the only digital identity and KYC business that got in.

Why we selected Tradle for DIA Amsterdam
Identity on blockchain, or Know Your Customer (KYC), is considered the killer application of the blockchain. Onboarding KYC is very painful for all financially regulated businesses as well as their clients.  Tradle is speeding the process up and reduces the friction caused currently.

Who are Tradle?
Founded in 2014 by Gene Vayngrib (CEO), Mark Vayngrib (CTO) & Ellen Katsnelson (VP Cloud Development). Gene Vayngrib is a Russian programmer who came to New York in 1991.
He is a serial entrepreneur and software veteran. He is also a blockchain evangelist, speaker and architect of Blockchain solutions. Prior to Tradle, he co-founded a startup that pioneered distributed business networks helping to ship and invoice millions of tons of products in a multimodal supply chain spanning 20 countries.

Gene Vayngrib, CEO & Co-founder Tradle

Website: www.tradle.io

Presenter: Simon Wilkinson
Contact Info: [email protected]