Quick Intro
Ponte Finance is a UK-based fintech specializing in property-backed finance and investment solutions. Through its digital platform, the company connects borrowers and investors, simplifying access to secured property finance. This way, Ponte Finance combines technology, responsible underwriting and a strong compliance framework to deliver a secure, transparent and efficient customer experience.
The fintech company connects three groups: brokers, borrowers and retail investors. Before a deal reaches investors, a surveyor reviews it, and an underwriter approves it. Each deal then shows key details, such as the loan term, LTV and funding progress. Ponte Finance also offers shares in its own PLC and operates through a website and mobile apps.
This makes a simple onboarding process, including identity verification, important for attracting new clients. However, due to regulatory compliance requirements and risks like high-value transactions, automated Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) screening solutions were needed, especially once Ponte Finance started to scale its operations faster and manual checks were no longer a sustainable approach.
The Challenges
The nature of Ponte Finance’s operations made it quite difficult to create a single onboarding and sign-up process for all types of clients they serve. For example, the fintech needed to find a solution that could help its team make onboarding easy for both investors supplying capital and borrowers seeking finance without compromising on their KYC/AML compliance system.
For that, the risk-based approach needed to be applied, where the onboarding workflow depends on the situation and the type of customer being verified. However, before iDenfy, compliance specialists working at Ponte Finance reviewed new applicants manually, which made the due diligence processes lengthy and relatively complex, as the team had to collect standard KYC documents, meet sanctions screening requirements and check multiple databases, taking up hours of work each day.
“As a growing fintech operating in financial services, we needed to verify customer identities and conduct AML screening in a way that was reliable, scalable and proportionate, without introducing unnecessary friction into the onboarding journey,” said Bruno Benner, the COO of Ponte Finance.
The option to go with lighter checks was not possible for Ponte Finance due to industry requirements. Investors needed standard KYC checks, with their personal information screened against AML databases, including Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) lists, sanctions lists, and global watchlists. Since the audience needed to access Ponte Finance from different countries, the platform also looked for global ID document coverage rather than support for UK documents only.
The classic dilemma that the company bumped into is abandoned sign-ups, especially in higher-risk situations where extra documentation needed to be collected and reviewed manually. This resulted in queues for the compliance specialists working at Ponte Finance and left clients waiting longer for their applications to be completed.
“The key challenge was balancing robust KYC and AML controls with the speed and convenience customers expect from a digital platform.”
Bruno Benner, the COO of Ponte Finance
Ponte Finance wanted to address these challenges early on and switch to an automated compliance system using a single integration and one dashboard for managing both KYC verifications and AML screening results. The goal was to optimize the end-user experience while simplifying the management part and providing a single view of all customer-related data with a fully compliant audit trail.
The Goal
“Our objective was to create a consistent, end-to-end digital verification process that could support growth and reduce dependence on fragmented or manual checks,” explained Bruno Benner, the COO of Ponte Finance.
Ponte Finance set out to replace a fragmented, manual ID verification process with a single integration. The requirements for a new vendor were specific:
- One vendor for KYC and AML checks, with the goal of simplifying work for analysts and reducing the hours spent on manually reviewing applications.
- A better onboarding flow that converts more new clients, no matter what kind of ID document they capture or what device they use; the mission was to reduce abandonment.
- An integration that fits the platform. Investor, borrower, and broker portals plus iOS and Android apps, so verification had to slot into existing flows rather than redirect users out of them.
Without a dependable and efficient verification process, onboarding could take longer, require additional manual review and create an inconsistent customer experience. It could also place unnecessary operational pressure on Ponte Finance’s compliance team and make it more difficult to scale while maintaining the same standards. For the company, this wasn’t the right way to go and switching to an automated IDV and AML screening process was a no-brainer when it came to the balance between a good U/X and ensuring compliance.
“The issue was not a single failed process; rather, we needed a specialist solution capable of combining verification quality, AML capabilities, user experience and integration flexibility within one workflow.”
Bruno Benner, the COO of Ponte Finance
The Solution
After reviewing several options, Ponte Finance chose iDenfy as its identity verification and AML screening service provider.
“We selected iDenfy’s KYC and AML solution, which enabled us to standardise key checks, automate repeatable verification steps and focus internal attention on cases that genuinely require additional review. This gave us a more structured and scalable approach while preserving a smooth journey for legitimate customers,” said Bruno Benner, the COO of Ponte Finance.
This switch helped automate multiple processes and create a new, AI-powered customer onboarding process, consisting of:
-> Government-issued ID capture. Each client captures a government-issued ID document, which the system uses to extract KYC details and detect signs of fraud, such as document alterations or forgery. With support for 16,000+ ID types from 200+ countries and jurisdictions, Ponte Finance can verify both UK clients and those registering from other countries. The user is guided throughout the process with tips on how to position the document and complete the step smoothly.
-> Selfie + liveness detection. The system then assesses if the user is alive and present during this next biometric verification step, helping detect spoofs, such as deepfakes, prerecorded videos, or printed photos and masks. Biometrics are cross-matched against the captured ID document portrait, allowing the user within Ponte Finance’s network to complete the smooth and simple IDV process in real-time.
-> Screening against AML databases. This includes running background checks and screening every verified individual against PEP lists, sanctions lists and adverse media sources. If a person is flagged and the system finds a match, Ponte Finance’s compliance specialists can manually review the case or automatically customize another high-risk workflow that could be triggered, asking the client for extra documentation or re-verification during monitoring.
“The verification flow was configured to align with our customer journey and internal compliance requirements, allowing us to strengthen controls without redesigning the wider onboarding experience,” said Bruno Benner.
In other words, low-risk clients go through a simpler KYC onboarding process, which is now fully automated and completed in real-time, without any waiting time from the customer’s side. Anything that doesn’t get approved, such as a failed check with an AML screening hit, can be escalated to Ponte Finance’s team with the full verification log attached and the reasons why the system flagged the individual, so the review starts with the needed evidence already collected, saving time and effort for analysts working with iDenfy’s KYC/AML dashboard.
“The implementation process was straightforward and collaborative. iDenfy’s team supported us throughout the setup, and the solution was incorporated into our digital onboarding workflow using iDenfy’s integration capabilities,” added Bruno Benner, the COO of Ponte Finance.
Why iDenfy?
Ponte Finance chose iDenfy’s software because it offered:
✔️ Global ID document support for faster scaling
✔️ ID verification and AML screening in a single integration
✔️ Smooth integration options into its existing system
✔️ Multiple onboarding flows and white-labeled U/X
✔️ A fully compliant, audit-ready trail with logged KYC/AML results
The Results
With iDenfy, Ponte Finance achieved the key goal and switched to a fully automated customer onboarding process that’s tailored to its industry’s requirements. The compliance aspect is fully covered, but there’s no unnecessary friction in the design that could cause users to abandon onboarding. The global aspect of the new system also helps attract new customers from different countries and accept their documents without hassle.
“iDenfy has become an established part of our onboarding and compliance framework, helping us create a more consistent digital verification process, reduce reliance on fragmented manual steps and support a smoother customer experience as the platform grows,” noted Bruno Benner, the COO of Ponte Finance.
This change resulted in a few positive outcomes for Ponte Finance:
- 15% higher KYC completion rate. A simpler verification during the registration and approval process helped Ponte Finance attract new users who complete KYC on their first attempt without dropping out.
- At least 80 hours saved per month. Instead of reviewing submitted ID documents and checking multiple AML sources, Ponte Finance’s team now only steps in when the system flags a case that needs further review. This automates daily tasks that used to be manual.
iDenfy’s system automatically recognizes the user’s country and document type, kickstarting their IDV verification and helping them get approved as fast as possible. Higher-risk cases are handled faster now, with the full brief and the reasons for AML findings already presented before they reach Ponte Finance’s compliance team.
“Following a successful collaboration, we recently renewed our partnership with iDenfy. This reflects our confidence in the solution and our shared commitment to secure, compliant and technology-driven financial services.”
Bruno Benner, the COO of Ponte Finance
