MILESTONE | Africa-Focused Digital Identity Provider, SmileID, Doubles Identity Verification Checks to 150 Million in Just One Year

Smile Identity, an Africa-focused identity verification solutions provider, has had 150 million identity verification checks effected on its technologies, doubling from 75 million a year ago.

“We’re accelerating at an unprecedented pace, thanks to our amazing customers, partners, and team. As we continue to innovate and expand, we remain committed to providing secure, reliable identity verification solutions across Africa and beyond. Thank you for being a part of this journey! Together, we’re shaping the future of identity verification,” the company said.

SmileID products are used by companies in a wide range of industries across Africa particularly fintechs and neobanks like Chipper Cash, Paga, PayStack, and YellowCard who integrate them into their mobile and web applications to help verify the identity of customers.

The recent milestone was also an opportunity for SmileID to announce recent updates to its software products, including a new feature that introduces offline capabilities to users of android and iOS mobile operating systems.

“This new feature ensures seamless identity verification even in areas with poor internet connectivity. We’ve now expanded this functionality to our mobile wrappers, including React Native and Flutter v10 Mobile SDKs, enabling more efficient cross-platform app development.”

The company also plans to release another offering for biometric authentication, this one dubbed SmartSelfie™ Compare. SmartSelfie™ Compare enables businesses to prevent fraud by comparing user selfies and liveness images against an image on file or government ID photos with unparalleled precision.


In a 2023 report, SmileID revealed the growing prevalence of biometric fraud on the continent, with the crypto sector experiencing the highest biometric fraud rates.

The report also revealed that among the various national IDs targeted by fraudsters, the three most commonly exploited were the national IDs of Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa.

It is no surprise SmileID is only one of many startups that are creating thriving businesses in this area. Click on this link for an analysis of operators in the sector on the African continent.

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