NETKI – Private Compliant ID Validation Blockchain Technology?

Netki is a California blockchain startup that is helping blockchain companies meet identity and compliance requirements. Find out everything you need to know about Netki today in our review.

What Is Netki?

Netki is a California-based blockchain startup best known for partnering with Bitt, the Caribbean’s leading blockchain FinTech company.

In 2017, Netki made headlines for launching their highly-anticipated Digital ID smartphone app, which is designed to help people control their identities more efficiently, while also giving banks a government-approved identification system built for the blockchain.

The app lets users take a selfie, take pictures of their government ID, then authorize that information to create a verified, legal, and shareable digital ID.

Netki is solving a crucial problem in the blockchain world: when blockchain technology like Bitcoin’s blockchain were first introduced, they emphasized anonymity. This made them ideal for people who wished to remain private – but it wasn’t ideal for mainstream banks and financial organizations.

Blockchain technology companies want to help mainstream banks add the blockchain to their services. However, in order to do that, mainstream banks need to meet compliance and identity requirements. Netki aims to help them solve that problem.

Netki was founded in 2014. Since being founded, Netki has been developing open source standards and digital identity solutions aimed at allowing financial service companies to meet regulatory compliance requirements.

How Does Netki’s Technology Work?

Netki’s latest Digital ID app uses the Hyperledger blockchain to provide a decentralized, open-source app, approved by governments. The system also meets compliance requirements. It’s fully Anti-Money Laundering (AML), for example, and Know Your Customer inclusive.

In a statement releasing the ID service, Netki’s CEO Justin Newton announced that, “Once a Digital ID is created and validated, it can be easily shared via digital identity certificates that are legally valid in the U.S. and other jurisdictions.”

The ID service meets a wide range of regulatory requirements – including the strict rules outlined by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Travel Rule, which states that all four participants in a transaction (sender, receiver, and each corresponding financial institution) need to disclose validated identities when exchanging amounts greater than $3,000.

Netki’s technology is currently being used by Bitt in the Caribbean. In fact, immediately after announcing the launch of the ID service, Netki announced it was working with Bitt to onboard citizens in select Caribbean countries.

The ID service is integrated with the Bitt Wallet. The Bitt Wallet is Bitt’s core service that lets consumers access their platform – including exchanging currencies or buying Bitcoins.

Barbados, Aruba, and the Bahamas have already signed up for Bitt’s platform.

How To Use Netki

Netki’s identity platform is designed to be very easy to use.

Step 1) Download the free app
Step 2) Use the app to take a selfie
Step 3) Attach a scan of both the front and bank of your state-issued identification card

The Netki platform will run an authorization check. The entire process, from start to finish, only takes a few minutes. By the end of the process, you have a legal digital ID.

Once your digital ID is created, you can easily share digital identities with other users. Webmasters can use the open source API to validate IDs using the system, for example, which opens up the potential uses for Netki for a wider range of cases.

Pricing is charged to businesses and institutions based on the number of certificates and the complexity of validation.

Bitt’s mobile wallet – available for Android and iOS – now offers Netki integration. The Bitt Wallet recently added the Barbados Dollar to its blockchain – a move that Bitt claims makes the Barbados Dollar the first already-existing currency that’s been made digital”. Since that move occurred, the Barbados Dollar has been heavily promoted across the Caribbean.

Netki’s BIP75

Netki’s identification system is based on a peer-to-peer payment protocol called BIP75. Netki co-authored that payment protocol.

BIP75 allows senders, receivers, and their financial partners to exchange all four identities using a private, encrypted channel. It’s the backbone of Netki’s compliance technology, and it’s a key reason why blockchain transactions can meet compliance requirements.

Today, BIP75 is publicly available as an open source protocol.

About Netki

Netki was founded by internet technology veterans “who believe in the power of open, permissionless networks to change the world”, explains the official Netki website.

The company is led by Justin Newton (founder and CEO) and Dawn Newton (co-founder and COO). Justin is an early internet pioneer and technology startup veteran best-known for companies like Blackline Systems, Demand Media, NetZero, and AboveNet.

All of those companies exited with $1 billion+ IPOs. Justin also founded the Internet Service Provider’s Consortium, which was the first trade association for ISPs, and served as the organization’s public policy director.

Dawn, on the other hand, has 20+ years of management experience at NetZero (now United Online), Microcom (acquired by Compaq), and InterAccess (acquired by Allegiance Telecom).

Netki is headquartered in Canoga Park, California. Crunchbase reports that the company has total equity funding of $3.5 million from 9 investors, including lead investor Oreilly AlphaTech Ventures.

You can contact Netki by email at [email protected]

Netki Conclusion

Netki is a blockchain technology company that gives blockchain companies the tools they need to meet compliance and identity solutions. The company is best-known for its BIP75 identity protocol and its identification service, which makes it easy for companies like Bitt to meet compliance requirements.

Netki solves a crucial problem in the world of blockchains: modern banks can make their business more efficient using blockchain technology. However, modern banks cannot use blockchain technology because blockchain lacks a good identification system.

Netki has created an identification system that authorizes users in just a couple of minutes – you download the Netki app, take a selfie, then take pictures of the front and back of your government-issued ID. By doing this, all four participants in transactions (the sender, receiver, and their respective institutions) can meet compliance requirements.

Netki is making blockchain a realistic possibility for modern banks and financial organizations. Stay tuned for more information about Netki as the company continues to expand.