KYB FAQ - Business Verification

1. What is business Verification?

Business verification is part of "Know Your Business(KYB)" measures. Business verification helps financial institutions verify institutional users and the compliance risk associated with their businesses.

2. What is the purpose of KYB(Know Your Business)?

KYB (Know Your Business) plays a crucial role in establishing a secure environment to safeguard users from fraud, money laundering, and illicit activities within our ecosystem. It is not only a recommended practice but also a standard requirement that regulators strongly advocate and enforce as part of risk mitigation and compliance measures, particularly in combating money laundering and ensuring effective risk assessment. By implementing KYB procedures, we enhance our ability to identify and mitigate potential risks, contributing to a safer and more trustworthy business environment.

3. What documents are required for business verification(KYB)?

The following list of requirements is for reference purposes only. Please select the most applicable “organization type” during the business verification to see the requirement list that is applicable to your business.

1. Certificate of Incorporation

2. Company Search Report or Business Extract or equivalent issued by the government or registered agent dated within 12 months

3. Certificate of Incumbency issued by the registered agent within 12 months

4. Memorandum and Articles of Association or any equivalent constitution documents

5. Latest Register of Shareholder(s)

6. Latest Register of Directors(s)

7. Ownership Structure Chart showing the ownership distribution of all Intermediary Beneficial Owner(s) and Ultimate Beneficial Owner(s) signed and dated by a Director (Template below)

8. Passport or ID Document of all Ultimate Beneficial Owner(s), Ultimate Controller(s), Director(s) and Authorized Person(s)

9. Proof of Residential Address of all Ultimate Beneficial Owner(s) and Ultimate Controller(s) issued within 3 months

10. Proof of Business Address issued within 3 months

4. How can I determine which roles to select in the affiliated person section?

Here is a brief definition of each role in the affiliated person section along with some examples:

1. Directors are individuals who oversee the operation of the entity and have the capacity to sign documents on behalf of the entity. In most cases, directorship can be verified through the latest Company Search Report / Business Extract or equivalent.

2. Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBOs) are individuals who hold 25% or more of the shareholding or voting right of the entity. They may not directly manage the business, but they ultimately benefit from the entity's assets, income, or profits.

3. Authorized Persons are individuals who are authorized to perform specific business duties and sign documents on behalf of the entity. In Bitget business verification, an Authorised Person refers to the individual authorized to operate the Bitget business account on behalf of the onboarding entity. While Directors are normally the default representatives, they can also delegate this authority to an Authorized Person through a Board Resolution or an Authorization Letter.

4. Ultimate Controllers are individuals who have 25% or more of the controlling power of an entity. In most cases, the key difference between UBOs and Ultimate Controllers is that UBOs emphasize economic ownership and benefit, while Ultimate Controllers encompass both legal and economic control.

Example 1:

• If an individual holds multiple roles, all applicable roles should be selected for the individual in the “Affiliated Persons” section.

Example 2:

• If individual A is the UBO and individual B is the Director and the Authorized Person, the UBO role should be selected under individual A and the Director and Authorized Person roles should be selected under individual B in the “Affiliated Persons” section.

Note that the examples provided are for reference purposes only. The actual selection of roles may vary based on the complexity of your business structure or your entity type.

5. What role should I select if I hold more than 1 role in the entity?

Under the Affiliated Person section, multiple roles can be selected for each individual. Refer to Step 7 in the KYB Verification Guideline for detailed instructions.

6. Can I appoint an employee or agent as an Authorised Person?

A Board Resolution or Authorization Letter properly signed and dated by the Director(s) is required if an employee or agent is to be appointed as the Authorized Person who will operate the account on behalf of your entity.

7. What documentation is required if there was a name change of the entity?

A Certificate of Change of Name is required to verify the name change. The document should show the original name, the new name and the effective date of such change.

8. What documents can be accepted as a Proof of Address?

Below is the list of acceptable Proof of Address. The document should be dated within 3 months unless specified otherwise and addressed to the subject individual or entity.

1. Utility bill (Electricity, water supply, Internet/phone bills, etc)

2. Bank statement

3. Residence proof issued by the Government (e.g. Electronic Extract from population system)

4. Letter issued by Insurance Companies

5. Latest Tax return/Council tax bill/Tax invoice

Your residential address should not be a P.O. box address unless this is the only form of address available in your jurisdiction.

9. Can I use my registered address as the "Office Address"? What if I operate my business remotely from home?

A business address (or office address) is required to identify your physical presence. Here are some example scenarios for your reference.

Scenario 1:

• The entity rents or owns an office whose address is used for company registration and is also where the business is operated. In this case, the business address is the same as the registered address.

Scenario 2:

• The Registered Address is the same as the address of your secretary agency or registered agent. However, since this address is only used for registration purposes by your agent, you need to provide your actual office address when applying. Additionally, you must submit relevant address proof that is dated within the last 3 months.

Scenario 3:

• The registered address is the same as your company secretarial agency's address in which smart office services (e.g., WeWork) are available. You can use this address as your business address, but you must provide proof of address showing the relationship between your business and the company secretarial agency (e.g., a valid office lease agreement/utility invoice issued by the company secretarial agency to you).

Scenario 4:

• If the business is operated from home, you will need to fill in the residential address where the business is operated as the office address with relevant proof of address dated within the last 3 months.

10. Why can't I locate my country on the country list?

Bitget does not provide services to users from the following countries/regions: Canada (Alberta), Crimea, Cuba, Hong Kong, Iran, North Korea, Singapore, Sudan, Syria, United States (including the U.S. Territories* and U.S. Minor Outlying Islands**), Iraq, Libya, Yemen, Afghanistan, Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Lebanon, Somalia, Netherlands and South Sudan.

*Puerto Rico, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa and Northern Mariana Islands

**Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Palmyra Atoll and Wake Island

11. Where can I see the reason why my business verification (KYB) failed?

After your application is reviewed, you will receive a system email at your registered email address, which will show the reason for rejection if your application is rejected. You can also check the reason for rejection by visiting the "business verification" page again.

12. Who should I contact if I encounter any issues or questions?

Please contact us at (kyb@bitget.com) and we will revert as soon as possible.