Mastercard has partnered with Bengaluru-based Signzy to use the latter’s video-based KYC (know your customer) solution for its banking customers. “Signzy’s AI and ML has well-established links to many KYC databases in India which allows seamless support for e-KYC and Video-KYC. Therefore, the platform also solves the problem of many SME’s in India who may not have all the KYC documents,” Rajeev Kumar, senior vice president for market development, South Asia at Mastercard, said. Mastercard has previously invested in Signzy.

Signzy’s video KYC service uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to prevent unauthorised system intrusion or attempted fraud. It can also deal with high volumes of video KYC transactions, Mastercard said, but didn’t specify the upper limit. Kumar also said that Mastercard and Signzy are assisting banks to on-board small and medium businesses in remote corners of the country for digital payments acceptance, open their accounts, and NBFCs to underwrite and disburse their loans. Signzy has over 90 Indian financial institutions as clients, including SBI, ICICI Bank, and Aditya Birla Sunlife AMC, among others. 

The Reserve Bank of India, in January, had allowed to use video-based KYC to establish a customer’s identity. It allows for a bank official to remotely verify a person’s PAN or Aadhaar; however, it has to be ensured that the person is physically present in the country during the KYC process by capturing their live location. Also, the “audiovisual interaction” will have to be initiated on the domain of the financial institution itself, and not on a third-party video calling service.

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