Keyless eyes global expansion after new partnerships with Experian, Synpulse

Biometric authentication startup Keyless is planning an expansion to new regions after new deals with data analytics and consumer credit reporting company Experian and financial services consulting firm Synpulse.

Keyless’ partnership with Experian will combine its authentication solution with Experian’s digital onboarding services and Know-Your-Customer (KYC) checks to offer passwordless authentication for financial institutions. The UK-based company allows users to log in and authorize transactions with a look into their mobile camera.

“The objective of this partnership is to globally scale a reliable and seamless authentication and onboarding service, which is already helping many customers in the financial and banking sector in Italy, so much so that we plan to expand to other sectors and in other regions in EMEA and APAC very soon,” says Andrea Carmignani, CEO and co-founder of Keyless.

Last year in December, Experian was certified as a Digital Identity Service Provider (IDSP) allowing it to provide Right to Work, Right to Rent and DBS checks. The UK government has also awarded Experian two new contracts to provide digital identity infrastructure, with a combined value of nearly £11 million (US$12.6 million).

Keyless’ partnership with Synpulse, on the other hand, is aimed at speeding up the adoption of passwordless Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) solutions in the financial industry, the companies said.

Synpulse has offices in over 20 countries, with its latest opening in Paris, France. The Swiss-headquartered firm provides services to banking and insurance institutions.

“Our collaboration with Keyless enables us to enhance our clients’ security while also improving the user experience,” says Marouane Bakhtar, managing director at Synpulse. “The innovative biometric technology of Keyless aligns with our commitment to delivering digitalization solutions that transform financial services.”

Keyless was acquired by Sift in November 2021. Its executives Paolo Gasti and Gal Steinberg recently spoke in a Biometric Update webinar arguing for decentralization and new encryption methods in biometric authentication.

The company claims it is the first passwordless solution to combine facial recognition with device verification software. The device binding means that data is not stored on the device or in the cloud. Instead, biometric data is encrypted and broken down on the device during authentication, before it’s deleted from the device and processed through different servers in Europe.

Its solution therefore not only prevents the rising number of fraud attacks, such as phishing and online identity theft and account takeover (ATO) attacks, but also ensures compliance with GDPR privacy guidelines, according to the company.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  Experian  |  Keyless  |  KYC  |  MFA  |  passwordless authentication