Yoti biometrics verify identity in blockchain property sale demonstration

A digital transfer of ownership via a blockchain prototype, built by Yoti and partners for the Digital Street research and development project of HM Land Registry (HMLR), has been demonstrated along with biometric identity verification to process the sale of a house in England with less uncertainty and delay.

The seller of a semi-detached house in Gillingham, Kent, described the transaction as “pretty straightforward,” and said the technology could make the process easier, according to the announcement. The technology was developed in consultation with a range of property market stakeholders, and tested in cooperation with Mishcon de Reya, Premier Property Lawyers, Barclays, and ShieldPay. The digital identity component of the HMLR electronic title deed transfer was provided by Yoti.

Identifying all parties to a property transaction at each point of progress is necessary to protect against fraud and money laundering, and each organization providing a service as part of a transaction must verify the parties’ identities. The different processes used by different parties to verify buyer and seller identity, such as emailed document images and checks by untrained staff, are identified in the announcement as a potential point of friction and risk. Yoti interacted with each service provider to fulfill this requirement.

“It’s great to see HMLR working hard to show how technology can make the property transaction process easier and quicker for all of us,” comments Yoti Commercial Director Simon Charnock. “This has been a hugely collaborative project and by encouraging participation from private organisations, HMLR are driving innovation and value in the property sector. It’s exciting to think that buying or selling a home could become a digitised proposition using blockchain and Yoti’s digital identity technology in the future.”

Yoti recently partnered with FaceTec to boost its biometric security with ZoOm 3D Authentication’s TrueLiveness technology.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  blockchain  |  digital identity  |  facial recognition  |  identity verification  |  secure transactions  |  Yoti