The idea of a common digital identity for consumers has become more compelling amid the digitalization of the world's economy. Many bank and credit union executives consider it a natural fit, one the industry should be prepared to lead on.
A new project backed by the government of Luxembourg could ultimately be influential in the U.S., where banks have been slow to develop a shared platform for digital identities.
The Los Angeles company has established a network that is designed to help verify the identities of consumer and small-business borrowers. It says 20 lenders are participating and that it is trying to recruit more.
They haven't thrown in the towel yet, but comments by top executives at the two big banks suggested that their interest in finding financial services uses for distributed ledgers is wearing very thin.
Alongside identity-document scanning and other ID verification, the two companies are offering real-time checks of lists of suspicious persons. The goal: keep money launderers out of the banking system.
Midwest BankCentre in St. Louis, with the help of a stable of fintechs, started Rising Bank to keep up with big banks in the hunt for deposits and millennial customers.
