Central bank seeks tenders for digital system to verify data of bank clients

The Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC) has issued a call for tenders for a project to digitally verify the data of bank clients.

The successful bidder will get the contract to set up a system for digitally and remotely verifying the data of current and prospective bank customers – a process called Client Digital Onboarding and Reviewing.

In a statement, the CBC said remote digital verification offers many benefits, such as speeding up the processing of banking transactions for individuals and corporations alike.

This digital solution is optional for commercial banks, the CBC said. However, it added, several lenders have signaled their intention to adopt digital onboarding – Bank of Cyprus, Hellenic Bank, Alpha Bank Cyprus, Astrobank, the Cyprus Development Bank, and Eurobank Cyprus.

Onboarding refers to the process of acquiring or subscribing new users, ensuring that they have access to all the services and products that an organisation can offer in a simple and fast way, integrating them into the database.

This process, now digitised, can be done completely online and remotely from any device with a camera.

The customer onboarding process is also known as Know Your Customer (KYC) or Know Your Client.

In a potentially related development, Cyprus has undertaken the commitment with the European Commission to establish a centrally-controlled credit scoring system – owned and operated by the Central Bank – by 2024.

Currently, the island’s sole credit agency goes by the name of Artemis – a private company belonging to the Association of Cyprus Banks.

The stated objective of the reform is to provide better information for new lending regarding a debtor’s financial profile. This should in turn contribute to low levels of non-performing loans.