Thirdfort, a client-risk management platform combining Know Your Client (KYC), Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Source-of-Funds (SoF) verification, has been downloaded by more than one million users since its launch 4 years ago, or around 2.5% of all adult smartphone users in the UK.* The fast-growing app has seen notable growth in demand, fuelled by fears of fraud and money laundering, alongside Government efforts to encourage the use of digital ID tools.

1m+ transactions 

Thirdfort’s mission is to protect society from fraud and money laundering. The platform automates digital ID and source of funds checks for anyone conducting high-value transactions such as buying a house, drafting a will or instructing a financial advisor. Overall, Thirdfort has now verified more than 1m people on behalf of more than 1,000 conveyancers, lawyers, estate agents and other regulated professional services firms. This accounts for around 2.5% of all adult smartphone users in the UK.*

The scale of the problem

Demand for Thirdfort has risen off the back of growing fraud and money laundering risks, a problem that shows no sign of abating. Money laundering now costs the UK economy £100bn annually, whilst the UK Government reportedly lost £21bn to fraud between 2020-2022 according to the National Audit Office. 

Consequently, regulated professionals face an ever-growing risk and compliance burden and are increasingly turning to technology to automate client ID and source of funds verification. At the same time, there has been growing focus in Westminster about the use of digital ID tools to meet these challenges and the Government’s UK Digital Identity & Attributes Trust Framework (DIATF) has introduced a set of rules designed to establish trust in digital identity products. The framework will support the ability to share digital identities, unlock improved user experience in the digital world, increase security and boost economic growth.

Olly Thornton-Berry, co-founder and Managing Director at Thirdfort, said: “This is a significant milestone for us. We’ve reached around 2.5% of adult smartphone users in the UK, which is a huge number for a business of our scale, but represents just the tip of the iceberg when you consider the problem we are trying to address. 

“When we launched Thirdfort, conveyancers were at the forefront of changing regulations and fraud risk, with 6,500 businesses acting as guardians and facilitators to £240bn worth of transfers. We’re now seeing the same requirements coming in for all regulated professionals, across property, legal and finance.”

Digitising high-value transactions  

Thirdfort estimates its platform has generated an 80% time saving for regulated professionals. When regulated professionals can spend up to half their time on compliance, this potentially saves lawyers, conveyancers and estate agents millions of pounds of fee-earning time. 

During a typical transaction such as buying a home or drafting a will, consumers can be asked to repeat the same manual identity, AML and funds checks numerous times. This involves their professional advisers manually collecting and verifying ID documents such as passports, bills and bank statements. But this slows down transactions and creates a bad experience for all. It is also insecure and prone to human error.

Using AI, biometric verification and Open Banking, Thirdfort’s web and mobile app automates such verification, enabling clients to securely confirm their ID and source of funds via their mobile phone. As a result, Thirdfort has transformed a cumbersome process that has historically taken weeks into one that takes just minutes. 

* Analysis by U Switch states: “As of March 2021, the UK digital population accounted for approximately 40 million unique users on smartphones, compared to 21.6 million tablet users, and 30.4 million desktop users.”