Wise AI raises at least $10M to address KYC gap in Southeast Asia

Malaysia-based selfie biometrics and digital ID provider Wise AI has raised at least ten million dollars in a series A funding round, Digital News Asia reports. The company declined to specify the amount raised, saying only that it is eight figures.

Funding round participants include Malaysia Technology Development Corporation (MTDC), VentureTech SBI Sdn Bhd (VT-SBI) and Sunway Group’s Sunway iLabs Ventures. Sunway is a repeat investor.

Wise AI sells KYC, document OCR and digital identity authentication. The company’s face biometrics algorithm has been tested by NIST, which showed fast matching speed, and its presentation attack detection was confirmed compliant to Level 1 of the ISO PAD standard by iBeta in 2023. Its stated goal is to provide digital identity to all 680 million people living in Southeast Asia.

The Malaysian government is supportive, selecting Wise AI as an example for the national AI Governance and Ethics framework, according to the report.

KYC and passing ID checks are significant challenges in Malaysia, a new FICO survey shows. Roughly two out of five of Malaysians have abandoned bank account applications, and over 30 percent have given up on credit card applications, due to complex or time-consuming processes. Half of the country’s consumers have noticed more identity checks in the past year when logging into bank accounts and making online purchases.

Even worse, 7 percent are aware that their identity has been used to open a fraudulent account, and another 30 percent suspect theirs has.

“As this sector ramps up, there has yet to be a dominant player in Southeast Asia,” says Wise AI Founder and CEO David Lim. “We envision becoming this region’s leading eKYC and digital identity provider. We intend to localise our offerings by working with partners in each country to fulfil their needs further.”

“We believe that the technology or application of AI is still in its infancy in Southeast Asia, thus, promises a hopeful prospect for significant market growth,” says VT-SBI Principal Mohd Jerry Tan. “The real-world experience its AI technology is bringing provided more sense for VT-SBI to invest in the founder’s inspirational vision.”

Article Topics

digital identity  |  funding  |  investment  |  KYC  |  Malaysia  |  selfie biometrics  |  Southeast Asia  |  Wise AI