Verifiable legal entity identifier standard from GLEIF published by ISO

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published an extension of the standard for embedding Legal Entity Identifiers (LEIs) in verifiable credentials that are digitally signed and tamper-resistant.

The new verifiable LEIs (vLEIs) were shepherded to this point by GLEIF, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation.

ISO 17442-3:2024 follows the publication of 17442-1 and 17442-2, both in 2020. GLEIF says the new standard addresses a global need for decentralized, automated authentication and verification of legal entities across industries.

The new extension of the 17442 family of standards specifies the use of Authentic Chained Data Container (ACDC) technology and the Key Event Receipt Infrastructure (KERI) protocol for tracing vLEIs to their root of trust, which is GLEIF.

vLEIs can be used for identity verification of individuals officially representing organizations. GLEIF began using biometrics to identify the representatives of legal entities in a proof of concept for the Asian Development Bank described in a 2021 brief.

“This is a pivotal moment in the evolution of digital organizational identity,” says Alexandre Kech, CEO of GLEIF. “The inclusion of the vLEI in ISO 17442 solidifies its role as the global benchmark for secure, digital verification of legal entities. As the vLEI gains traction, it promises to revolutionize how businesses authenticate and trust each other, enabling seamless interactions in a way that has never been possible before. The vLEI not only enhances security and trust but also drives efficiency and scalability across platforms and industries.”

Nord vLEI became the first qualified vLEI issuer in the EU earlier this year.

Office opens in Mumbai

GLEIF has also opened an office in Mumbai, India, to support regional growth in LEI use.

India is among the jurisdictions with the highest growth in the use and renewals of LEIs, in part due to encouragement from the Reserve Bank of India in the form of proactive regulations, according to the announcement. The RBI’s Payment Vision 2025 report, published in 2022, established plans to implement LEIs

The motivation behind encouraging LEIs is seen in an epidemic of tax credit scams involving fake companies, reported by The New Indian Express. An official in Karnataka says 1,000 fake companies are shut down every year, with others that are not caught within 6 months simply vanishing after faking invoices to claim GST credits.

Commercial Tax Commissioner C Shikha says biometrics are among the technologies being implemented to identify those carrying out the fraud.

The state has blocked 3 billion rupees (approximately US$36 million) in false claims since mid-August.

“Building closer engagement with key markets globally is part of GLEIF’s strategy to ease and support LEI adoption, with the broader aim of hardwiring trust into every business relationship,” states Kech in announcing the Mumbai office.

The new office will be led by Vikas Panwar, GLEIF’s Country Business Manager for India.

GLEIF now has six offices worldwide, including in Tokyo and Singapore.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  digital identity  |  fraud prevention  |  GLEIF  |  identity verification  |  India  |  ISO standards  |  Legal Entity Identifier (LEI)