eIDAS-Compliant eSignatures And Post-COVID Business Continuity

The COVID-19 pandemic put many industries to the test as they found alternate ways to serve their customers and managed to survive the crisis. The banking and finance sector may have already been ahead of the curve with digitalization.

Many banks and financial institutions were already providing or beginning to provide customers with the ability to digitally sign loan documents and other important financial documents. But with stay-at-home orders, the necessity for full digital customer-client relationships has gained prominence in this sector. Institutions that had not yet embraced digitalization stood at a crossroads where accepting digitalization was now a necessity for business continuity.

Business Continuity During COVID-19

As COVID-19 infection rates alarmingly spread throughout the European Union and around the globe, businesses were faced with three primary needs to maintain business continuity in the face of widespread stay-at-home orders.

Serving their existing customers without service interruption but also without physical in-person meetings through implementing a pure digital player and revamping internal processes.
Keeping control while maintaining legal compliance and protecting customer and business data
Onboarding new solutions including digital KYC (know your customer) and reinventing a user-centric business app

Finding a Global Solution

Globalization has been a major player in the way many organizations, including banks and financial institutions, have expanded their operations. Of course, this is a challenge under even the best circumstances. Throwing COVID-19 into the mix with a mass need for increased digitalization has produced additional challenges for global players in search of a global solution.

Challenges facing the banking and finance sector with digitalization include:

Addressing different use cases, such as retail vs. corporate

Numerous, if not thousands of different types of documents
Millions of transactions that require legally-binding consent

Addressing different jurisdiction requirements

Some offering equivalence with legacy signatures
Some offering admissibility in court of law
While eIDAS is the law of the land for EU members, other localities have their own laws, i.e., ZertES, SG ETA, HK ETO, etc.

Booking centres using same technology but must consider:

Assurance of data privacy (KYC)
Strong data segregation
Smooth user experience (UX) for browser and mobile device signing

Digitalizing the Signature UX

In digitalizing the signature UX, there are three major considerations:

Providing a trustworthy user identity verification, which can be accomplished through:

Legacy KYC/RA process
Video identification app
eID (preferable notified IdP)

Providing a non-repudiable UX by:

Demonstrating “what you see is what you sign” aka WYSIWYS
Implementing sound security
Complying with digital signature law and fulfilment forms

Acknowledging booking centres use same IT but:

Data privacy (KYC) needs to be assured
Strong data segregation must be maintained
Smooth UX for browser and mobile device signing is needed

Implementing a Sound Digital Signature Strategy

Considering the challenges facing the banking and financial sector in maintaining business continuity during COVID-19 and beyond, it is a matter of survival to implement a sound digital signature strategy going forward. To do this, businesses must address their:

Key Drivers for Digitalization:

Digital transformation
Business continuity
Increase in non-repudiation
Reduction in cost and time-to-market
Smooth UX for browser and mobile device use

Key Challenges Facing Business:

Lack of expertise
Ownership of service/business case
Verifying user identity
IT implementations
Local and global legal hurdles

Hopefully, with world-wide vaccination efforts, we are now moving to a post-pandemic state after months of operating in an almost surreal “fight or flight” mode. While it is apparent that COVID-19 precipitated the need of digitalization for business continuity, society has rapidly assumed this new comfort for its convenience, simplicity, and convenience. Now is the time for banks and financial institutions to finetune, expand, or implement their digitalization efforts to best suit their operations to ensure future business continuity regardless of what the future may bring.