HSBC, Hong Kong’s largest bank with over 220 branches and 3 million PayMe digital wallet users, faced a problem that sounds simple but costs billions across the industry: returning customers had to verify their identity over and over again.
Every time a verified HSBC customer tried to sign up for a new service, they hit the same wall. Upload documents. Wait for approval. Repeat.
The result? Slow signups. Drop-offs at critical moments. Lost accounts.
For a bank processing millions of transactions daily, this wasn’t just frustrating. It was revenue left on the table.
The Hidden Cost of Repetitive Verification
Traditional KYC wasn’t built for a world where one customer uses multiple financial products. It was built for siloed systems where verification happened once per platform and stayed locked in that platform’s database.
But HSBC customers don’t live in silos. They use PayMe for peer-to-peer payments, mobile banking for daily transactions, investment platforms for wealth management, and loan applications when they need capital.
Each new touchpoint meant starting from zero. Even though HSBC had already verified these customers, the verification couldn’t move with them.
The friction was costing them conversions. And in an era where neobanks onboard users in minutes, traditional banks couldn’t afford to make customers wait days.
The Solution: Verify Once, Use Everywhere
HSBC partnered with Billions Network, leveraging the same zero-knowledge infrastructure that powers Privado ID, to build something that didn’t exist before: reusable KYC credentials that work across platforms while preserving customer privacy.
As part of a production pilot, HSBC implemented the HSBC Trusted ID app to allow PayMe customers to reuse their verified credentials across HSBC services.
Here’s what changed:
When a customer opens an HSBC account, the bank conducts KYC once and issues a verifiable credential. That credential lives in the customer’s wallet, not locked in HSBC’s database.
When that same customer signs up for PayMe or applies for a loan, they don’t re-upload documents. They share a cryptographic proof that HSBC already verified them, without exposing any raw personal data.
The technical implementation included:
- One-time verification that creates reusable credentials across HSBC platforms
- Offchain verification via Privado’s Verifier SDK, reducing steps and eliminating redundant checks
- Selective disclosure technology, so customers share only the essential information each service needs (age verification doesn’t need your full address)
No repeated document uploads. No waiting for manual approval. No privacy compromise.
The Results: Speed Meets Security
The impact was immediate:
Signups became faster and smoother, directly improving conversion rates. Customers who might have abandoned the process after seeing another document upload screen instead completed onboarding in seconds.
User experience improved across the board. What used to feel like bureaucracy now felt seamless.
And critically, customer privacy remained intact. Even as verification became more efficient, no personal data was centrally stored or exposed across platforms.
HSBC maintained full regulatory compliance while delivering the kind of frictionless experience customers expect from modern fintech.
The solution even earned recognition at the Red Dot Design Awards, validating both its technical innovation and user experience impact.
Why Reusable KYC Changes Everything
What HSBC built isn’t just useful for banks. It’s a blueprint for any organization that verifies users across multiple services - even the EU.
The same infrastructure that speeds up PayMe signups can enable:
- Faster loan applications without re-verification
- Seamless cross-border financial services
- Streamlined wealth management onboarding
- Instant access to new products for existing customers
The same zero-knowledge technology powering HSBC's reusable KYC is already enabling other breakthrough use cases. Billions partnered with Tria to bring zkKYC to Web3 finance, and secured one of the fairest token distributions in crypto history with Lagrange using Proof of Uniqueness.
And because it’s built on zero-knowledge proofs, the system gets more efficient without becoming less private. You prove what’s necessary. Nothing more.
This is what compliance looks like when it’s built for users, not just regulators.
The Bigger Picture: Privacy-First Finance
Traditional finance has operated on a simple assumption: to verify someone, you need to see and store their data.
Zero-knowledge technology breaks that assumption.
HSBC's production pilot demonstrates how major financial institutions can embrace privacy-preserving infrastructure at scale. Even in pilot form, the system proved capable of serving real customers with the kind of seamless experience that sets a new standard.
HSBC joins other major institutions like Deutsche Bank and Sony Bank that have validated Billions’ infrastructure for real-world financial services. When Billions launched as the first Human and AI Network, these institutional partnerships demonstrated that privacy-first verification isn't just a Web3 experiment - it’s the foundation for next-generation financial infrastructure.
When a bank founded in 1865 can deliver frictionless, privacy-first onboarding, it raises the bar for everyone else.
Conclusion: Onboarding Should Never Kill Growth
HSBC’s production pilot demonstrates something critical for every financial institution: customer convenience and regulatory compliance aren’t opposites. They’re requirements.
By implementing reusable KYC powered by Billions' zero-knowledge infrastructure through the HSBC Trusted ID app, the bank validated that friction can be eliminated without sacrificing security, privacy, or compliance.
The pilot results? Faster signups. Better conversion rates. Happier customers.
In a world where every second of onboarding friction costs real revenue, Billions’ reusable KYC infrastructure turns verification from a bottleneck into a competitive advantage.
Want to eliminate onboarding friction while preserving customer privacy?
Reach out to our team at growth@billions.network
About HSBC
HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organizations, serving millions of customers through its global network. Founded in Hong Kong in 1865, HSBC operates approximately 220 branches across Hong Kong and has developed innovative digital services including PayMe, one of the region’s leading peer-to-peer payment platforms with over 3 million users.
About Billions Network
Billions is the first Human and AI Network, built on mobile-first, privacy-preserving technology to scale trust in the age of AI. Created by the founders of Disco.xyz, Hermez, and Polygon, Billions powers over 9,000 zero-knowledge and identity projects, including major organizations like HSBC, Sony Bank, Deutsche Bank, TikTok, and government entities. The network’s infrastructure, including the Privado ID technology stack, enables privacy-first verification for KYC, proof of humanity, and decentralized identity use cases. Since launch, the ecosystem has grown to more than 2.2 million verified users.
