Supplier Vetting Startup Raises $25M

There’s a rush of on-demand startups joining the marketplace, but there’s just one problem: Who is going to make sure they vet those new hires/companies that are brought on?

That’s exactly what the U.K.’s Onfido does, using its software-based solutions to help companies better vet the people and services they need. Now, Onfido has raised another $25 million to further its goals and potentially expand its background-checking platform to the U.S.

The funding round was led by Idinvest Partners, with assistance from Wellington Partners and CrunchFund, bringing its total funds raised to over $30 million. And its first plans are to take that money and use it to help it go international. From there, the plans are to expand its machine-learning platform, which is the basis for its background-checking software.

“Background checking isn’t new; what has changed is business,” Husayn Kassai, CEO and cofounder of Onfido, told VentureBeat. “Legacy background checks — manual and dependent on a face-to-face meeting — worked for an offline world. Today, online companies need a new system that works instantly and remotely.”

He noted that the company’s vision goes beyond just providing software but instead focuses on building a “trust engine.”

“Trust is the new global currency,” said Kassai. “Whether it’s home-sharing or transferring money online, digital businesses rely on their users trusting each other in order to function and grow. With our team, our technology and now Idinvest’s international expertise, we have everything we need to achieve our vision and become a global trust symbol, recognized by companies and consumers alike.”

Currently, Onfido offers its service via an API to its customers so they can then integrate the software into their own HR systems. The company claims it can perform basic ID checks in seconds and can identify fraud patterns to quickly catch when people are being deceptive.