Argos KYC aims to provide a global online identity verification solution for KYC and AML screening. Recently the company presented the first Travel Rule solution for unhosted wallets.

Travel Rule is the first crypto regulation implemented globally. According to the Travel Rule created in 2012 and updated in 2019 by FATF,  financial institutions are required to pass on certain information while doing transfers. VASPs are supposed to communicate the information of the originators and beneficiaries of crypto transactions that exceed a certain amount. The main problems with implementing the Rule are “nonuniformity” (each VASP has its own requirements) and risks connected with data privacy. Besides, when it comes to transactions to unhosted wallets and non-custodial wallets, they are not explicitly covered by AML/FT rules.

Here comes the ARGOS ID. Creating an unhosted crypto wallet is done without submitting any personal information. ARGOS ID helps on identifying the unhosted wallet users to both the originator and the beneficiary. The idea is simple. A customer needs to go through the verification process once. Then he can use his or her account to connect to multiple crypto wallets and to prove his identity at any time for any transaction.

The company says that the owner of the wallet can manage his or her personal information (verified crypto wallet, photos submitted for ID and selfie etc) as ARGOS ID is a self-sovereign digital ID.

We do not see how submitting personal data to Argos is better than submitting it to VASPs, but at least customers do not have to keep them with exchanges that now are going through uncertain times.

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