Rethinking KYB: Why a global golden record is essential for verifying business clients

In July 2024, Citigroup was hit with a $135.6 million fine, demonstrating the growing costs of fragmented business verification processes. Regulators flagged incomplete and inaccurate business identity verification as a key weakness—one that left the bank exposed to compliance failures and potential financial crime.

This isn’t an isolated issue. For many financial service providers, marketplaces, and payment platforms, Know Your Business (KYB) compliance remains slow and prone to errors. Without a single, trusted source of business identity data, companies struggle with inefficiencies, regulatory penalties, and onboarding delays.

A global golden record addresses these challenges by serving as a single, accurate source for business identity verification. It’s the next evolution in KYB compliance and is already transforming how companies verify businesses across jurisdictions.

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Global golden record: A new standard for KYB

A global golden record centralizes business identity data, eliminating inconsistencies and outdated records by providing accurate, real-time information. Rather than piecing together data from multiple fragmented sources, companies can verify businesses quickly using a single, trusted record.

A global golden record has the following key features:

• Accurate and reliable data: Conflicting records increase compliance risks. A global golden record resolves discrepancies by unifying data from validated sources, ensuring accuracy and reliability.

• Standardized compliance across borders: KYB requirements vary by region, creating inefficiencies. A global golden record establishes a consistent framework that simplifies verification and helps businesses meet global regulations with ease.

• Faster onboarding and reduced risk: Manual business verification slows down operations and increases risk. A global golden record automates much of the process, enabling quicker and more secure onboarding.

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Current KYB challenges

Meeting KYB compliance demands has become increasingly difficult for many businesses. Inefficient processes, fragmented data sources, and evolving regulations often hinder operations and increase the risk of penalties.

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Fragmented data creates delays and errors

Business identity data is often spread across multiple databases, government registries, and third-party sources. Inconsistent formats, outdated records, and missing details complicate verification, making it difficult to confirm a company’s legitimacy. These inefficiencies delay onboarding and create vulnerabilities that fraudsters can exploit.

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Cross-jurisdictional regulatory inconsistencies add complexities

KYB regulations vary widely across jurisdictions, with differing documentation requirements, risk assessments, and compliance checks. What qualifies as adequate business identity verification in one country may fall short in another, causing friction for businesses operating globally.

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Resource-intensive processes drain compliance teams

Many KYB workflows rely on manual reviews, requiring compliance teams to cross-check business records, analyze risk factors, and verify ownership structures. The more fragmented the data, the more time and resources spent reconciling discrepancies, diverting attention from proactive risk management. This can also potentially compromise the security of business verification processes.

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The benefits of global golden records

A global golden record offers a simplified approach to business verification, enhancing compliance, security, and operational efficiency. By consolidating verified data, it reduces costs, strengthens security, and streamlines verification processes.

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Fast, reliable business verification

A global golden record eliminates the need to search multiple data sources. With all verified information in one centralized location, companies can onboard new clients faster and make more confident decisions.

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Consistent compliance across borders

A golden record standardizes business verification to meet global regulatory requirements. This allows businesses to operate across regions with fewer delays and complications.

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Stronger fraud prevention and risk management

With a centralized, trusted source for global business verification, fraudulent entities face greater difficulty bypassing checks. This enhances security and simplifies KYB processes.

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Cost-effective and efficient compliance workflows

Automation through global golden records streamlines business verification, reducing the need for manual oversight. This improves accuracy while cutting down on time and resource costs.

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The Markaaz advantage

Our verification platform, called Markaaz Ready, is setting the new standard for secure business verification by offering access to 542 million business records across 200+ countries. Our solution enables:

• Real-time verification across jurisdictions

• Automated compliance checks that adapt to regional requirements

• Secure API integration with existing systems

• Continuous monitoring and updates of business information

By leveraging global golden records, Markaaz helps financial institutions, payment providers, and marketplaces verify business clients with speed, accuracy, and confidence. This reduces compliance burdens while improving operational efficiency.

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The golden record: Real-world applications across sectors

Global golden records are reshaping how sectors like financial services, marketplaces, and payment providers handle KYB, making verification faster, more reliable, and secure across the board.

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Financial institutions: Verifying corporate accounts

Banks and financial institutions often struggle with verifying corporate clients due to inconsistent or outdated data. A global golden record provides a unified view of a company's identity, facilitating faster and more reliable verification. This approach not only reduces the risk of fraud but also helps institutions stay compliant with regulatory requirements.

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Marketplaces: Ensuring legitimate vendors and buyers

Online marketplaces must verify the legitimacy of vendors and buyers to maintain trust and safety. A global golden record allows these platforms to authenticate participants efficiently, reducing the chances of fraudulent activities. This ensures all parties meet platform standards, fostering a secure trading environment.

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Payment providers: Onboarding businesses faster and more securely

For payment providers, quick and secure onboarding is crucial for seamless transactions. A global golden record streamlines this process by providing accurate, real-time business information, enabling providers to verify and approve merchants promptly. This efficiency accelerates service delivery and minimizes the risk of onboarding fraudulent entities.

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Upgrade your business verification process with Markaaz

KYB compliance challenges have made business verification more complex than ever. Global golden records are transforming this by offering a single, standardized source for business identity verification—ensuring faster, more secure, and cost-effective compliance.

Markaaz Ready effectively brings the concept of golden records to life. With 542 million business records across 200+ countries, Markaaz consolidates fragmented data into a single, accurate profile, helping financial institutions, payment providers, and marketplaces verify businesses quickly and with confidence.

With real-time updates, automated compliance checks, and seamless API integration, Markaaz reduces onboarding delays, prevents fraud, and helps companies stay ahead of regulatory requirements.

Connect with our team to learn how Markaaz can deliver secure and accurate global business verification at scale.