Alpaca Launches Onfido SDK for Broker API

We are excited to announce the launch of Onfido SDK for Broker API. This is a new Alpaca KYC as a service offering that is highly useful to onboard international end-users. Onfido is a leading technology organization that provides sound identity verification solutions that have helped over 1,500 companies reduce fraud, onboard more users, and increase their account approval rates. You can now speed up your customer identification process by embedding the Onfido SDK directly into your fintech app!

Build a seamless KYC process with Broker API

Easily onboard international end-users

Conducting KYC globally is complex, as a myriad of country-specific regulations must be taken into account, and penalties for non-compliance are severe. By integrating the SDK, you can safely verify end-users from across 195 countries through document verification by having them capture in real-time photo IDs covering over 2,500 documents and passports.

An additional layer of protection is also added in the process with biometric verification in which end-users would simply take a selfie or short video to corroborate whether or not their identity is bona fide.

Simplify your onboarding flow

Developing a streamlined customer identification process is one of the most crucial components of building your fintech app. This is the onboarding step that can lead to higher drop-off rates if the sign-up process is complicated or difficult to comprehend. Onfido’s unique SDK was specifically designed to remove this friction by offering real-time feedback and automatic prefilled sign-up forms captured from their ID. With the release of Onfido SDK  for Broker API, we aim to simplify and remove the complexity out of the onboarding process by executing KYC on your behalf.

Real-time validation and  fraud prevention

The Onfido SDK integrations offer end-users live guidance, real-time feedback, and validation with built-in glare and blur detection. The SDK prevents failed submissions and is well-equipped to catch any fraudulent IDs by checking against complex fraud signals such as font inconsistencies and doctored documents.  

A faster way to open brokerage accounts

Manual review of compliance documents is a tedious, time-consuming, and expensive activity. Choosing Onfido SDK as your KYC solution can help reduce operational costs and speed up your account approval process up to 5x by combining the best of artificial intelligence and expert human analysts.

Secure documentary and non-documentary verification

In an effort to establish the legitimacy of an end user's identity and determine potential risk factors, federal law mandates financial institutions to verify customer information. There can be two ways to conduct  KYC (know your customer), i.e through documentary or non-documentary methods. To give context, the former refers to comparing end-user information against government-issued photo IDs, while the latter compiles data points (address, date of birth, tax ID)and verifies this information against public databases.

The documentary method is a common approach to verifying identity, but can add friction to the user onboarding experience with concerns about privacy and the collection of documents. On the other hand, non-documentary can lead to a faster onboarding process, but is not feasible for a single provider to accomplish internationally due to a lack of publicly available data.

Why choose Onfido SDK?

Onfido's extensive global coverage and robust privacy-protection policies enable you to initiate documentary and non-documentary KYC/CIP verification in a faster and more secure way.  Onfido SDK integration can lead to higher account approval rates, a frictionless onboarding experience, and prevent up to  98.7% of ID fraud attempts with their expert human and machine learning detection.

Key features*

  • An official and easy-to-use native integration with Broker API
  • Easily onboard end-users through ID document, biometric and real-time verification
  • Increase account approval rates up to 5x
  • Covers 195 countries: includes Europe, North America, South America, Asia, and Africa
  • Supports over 2,500 separate documents and passports
  • Catch up to 98.7% of ID Fraud attacks

To learn more, check out our learn article on How to integrate Onfido SDK into your brokerage app or view Onfido integration guide in Broker API documentation.

How to integrate the Onfido SDK into your brokerage app
Learn how to integrate the Onfido SDK into your fintech app. With this new integration, we offer secure documentary verification to onboard end-users.
Broker API
Open brokerage accounts, enable commission-free trading, and manage the ongoing user experience with Alpaca Broker API

*Onfido data as of Dec. 31, 2021

Alpaca Securities LLC and Onfido are not affiliated and neither are responsible for the liabilities of the other.

Brokerage services are provided by Alpaca Securities LLC ("Alpaca"), member FINRA/SIPC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AlpacaDB, Inc. Technology and services are offered by AlpacaDB, Inc.

This is not an offer, solicitation of an offer, or advice to buy or sell securities, or open a brokerage account in any jurisdiction where Alpaca is not registered (Alpaca is registered only in the United States).

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About Sonia Sethi
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