The passport test shaping Central Asia’s cross-border platforms
A financial platform built in Central Asia can reach a customer almost anywhere. Opening an account is harder. Before a broker can serve that customer, it must establish who they are, even if they have never set foot in the country where the broker is licensed.
That takes more than receiving a photograph of a passport. A financial firm must assess whether the document is authentic and whether the person presenting it is its rightful holder. Remote checks can combine document inspection with a live video call or a selfie matched to the passport photo. Canada’s financial intelligence agency, for example, permits remote use of government photo ID when firms authenticate the document and establish that its photo and name match the applicant.
A survey of major markets shows that remote verification is already possible, though the permitted methods and safeguards differ. US broker-dealers can use documentary and non-documentary methods under their customer identification programmes. The UK permits digital identity services for identity checks under its money-laundering rules. EU guidance covers remote onboarding by credit and financial institutions. Singapore’s guidance on non-face-to-face due diligence extends to firms dealing in capital markets products. Australia explicitly describes online video and biometric comparisons as ways to establish that a customer is the person claimed. India allows stockbrokers to complete aspects of customer verification through video or electronic KYC.
The technology is available off the shelf. Entrust’s identity service, formerly Onfido, checks documents and compares a selfie or video image with the ID photo, with a liveness check intended to detect impersonation. Jumio offers document authentication, facial matching and liveness detection. Veriff uses document checks, selfies and biometric liveness tests. Sumsub combines document or data-based verification with liveness checks and sanctions screening; Trulioo combines document and biometric checks with information from external data sources. These are examples of established providers, rather than a ranking by market share. A broker still has to configure, assess and supervise the checks required under the rules that apply to it.
For Central Asian businesses seeking customers beyond their home market, the regulatory position in Kyrgyzstan is especially relevant. In July 2026, the country’s financial markets regulator announced government measures creating a legal basis for remote identification and verification in securities services. It said Kyrgyz citizens would be able to open brokerage accounts fully remotely once market participants connect to state information systems. The regulator also said the changes would let non-residents use Kyrgyz securities firms’ services without travelling to the country. Implementation by individual firms remains an important step.
Dostor illustrates the regional opportunity. The startup has a development team based in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan and works with a Kyrgyz-licensed brokerage company as its licensed partner. Its model aims to reach clients around the world. “Remote verification could help Kyrgyz firms reach clients in markets that were previously difficult to serve,” says Murad Sharipov, Dostor’s creative director.
Remote identification could remove a costly barrier for businesses built across Central Asia, but it does not itself grant permission to offer brokerage services in every country where a prospective customer lives. The licensed broker must still meet its customer due diligence obligations, while the business must assess the rules governing its activities in each market it seeks to serve. For the region’s cross-border platforms, a reliable digital identity check is a gateway to growth.
