Smile ID deepens identity verification footprints with Appruve acquisition

By Alexander Chiejina.

Smile ID,formerly known as Smile Identity, is to deepen its identity verification footprints following its acquisition of the parent company of Appruve, Inclusive Innovations, Inc, it has emerged.

The acquisition, Business A.M. learnt, is part of Smile ID’s expansion plan across Africa, and it comes as the company pushes on with fulflling regulatory requirements to fnalise the transaction for the affiliated entities in Africa, Business A.M. can disclose.

Peace Itimi, director of marketing, Smile ID, noted that this strategic acquisition will enable the company to solidify its position as Africa’s leading identity verifcation and digital Know Your Customer (KYC) provider.

“At Smile Identity, we have spent the past six years building our business by combining document verification, face verification, biometrics, and data integrations into local trusted ID authorities to verify people’s true identities. Since 2018, Appruve has been using financial and identity data to detect fraud and automate compliance for businesses across Africa. With both companies sharing a similar outlook on the problem of identity in Africa and a unified vision of the future success of Africa’s digital economy, we believe that this acquisition will provide an unmatched solution to the market and enable millions more Africans to prove their true identity online easily,” Itimi said.

Mark Straub, chief executive ofcer of Smile ID, also speaking on the development, said, “With this acquisition, we can strengthen our overall understanding of the direction of KYC in Africa. This includes our knowledge of the markets, our relationships with regulators, and our collaborations with compliance officers across the continent in both the public and private sectors.”

With this arrangement, Smile ID is joining forces with Appruve in an expanded suite of APIs, including mobile money, data, and anti-fraud checks, providing customers with a more comprehensive digital identity verifcation solution.

The combined entity is expected to cover over one billion Africans, the African diaspora, and 100 million African businesses, supporting over 230 documents and data types with integration options for every device and operating system combination in Africa.

 “From a product standpoint, we’re excited to work with Smile Identity on fraud related data sources, an area that Appruve has looked at extensively and built some infrastructure around. On the other hand, Smile Identity just rolled out an AML product, and when combined with these datasets and our shared presence across multiple markets, we will provide the best possible experience for all our clients across Africa,” said Paul Damalie, founder and chief executive officer, Appruve.

The acquisition of Appruve by Smile ID is expected to deepen its presence in Ghana and expand into francophone Africa, focusing on Cote D’Ivoire and Senegal. With the ability to verify all local identity documents across Francophone Africa, the company will be able to serve its clientele cutting across banks and financial services institutions serving West Africa.

With over 75 million identity verifications, Smile ID has built Africa’s most robust KYC/AML suite of products. In addition, through expansion into new territories, the launch of document verification globally and garnering more than $30 million in funding, the company can cement its position as Africa’s leading identity verification and digital KYC provider.