KYC: verifying a person
KYC answers three questions: is the person who they claim to be, are they really present, and are they on a sanctions list or among politically exposed persons?
- An identity document read and checked (national ID card, passport, residence card).
- A comparison between the person’s face and the document photo.
- A liveness check, to rule out a photo of a photo or a replayed video.
- A proof of address, depending on the risk level.
- Sanctions and PEP screening.
KYB: verifying a company
KYB checks that the company legally exists, what it does, who runs it and who ultimately controls it: the beneficial owners.
- Registration: in Côte d’Ivoire, the RCCM extract and the CEPICI single identifier.
- Articles of association, legal form and taxpayer number.
- Directors and shareholders.
- Beneficial owners, with the ownership chain.
- Screening of the company and of each of these people.
When the two combine
A company does not sign; people sign on its behalf. KYB therefore identifies people (signatories, directors, beneficial owners), and each of them must in turn pass KYC. A good tool chains the two without re-typing.
How Verita handles both
Verita runs KYC and KYB on one platform: the business file reads the RCCM, the articles and the tax number, compares them with Ivorian sources, then starts the KYC of every signatory and the screening of every beneficial owner automatically.
Frequently asked questions
Is a sole trader a KYC or a KYB case?
Usually both: the person is verified as an individual, and their trade-register entry is verified as well, where one exists.
Does KYB replace KYC of the directors?
No. KYB identifies the directors and beneficial owners; each must then be verified and screened individually.
Updated 19 October 2026. The regulatory information on this page comes from public sources consulted in October 2026. It is given for guidance only and is not legal advice.