LendInvest and Onfido form ‘selfie’ partnership to speed up Buy-to-Let ID checks

By Bridging Loan Directory 12th July 2018

London, 12 July 2018 – LendInvest, the UK’s largest marketplace platform for mortgages, and Onfido, the leading identity verification provider, have announced a partnership that will further streamline LendInvest’s digital application process for its Buy-to-Let (BTL) product.

By incorporating Onfido’s proprietary technology into its digital application system, LendInvest BTL applicants can now confirm their identity online, instead of the need for paper forms. Their brokers can prove a client’s identity by simply uploading a photo of one identity document to LendInvest’s application portal (e.g. passport or driving licence) along with a ‘selfie’ photo of the applicant taken with their mobile phone.

This partnership makes the mortgage application process easier for both brokers and their clients. It saves them essential time, effort and resource by removing the need for certified physical copy documents to be provided. This innovation directly alleviates one of the frustrations brokers are most vocal about when handling mortgage applications on behalf of their clients across the market.

Plans are also in place to incorporate Onfido technology into the onboarding process used for LendInvest’s online investment platform over the coming months.

Christian Faes, pictured, Co-Founder & CEO of LendInvest, commented:

“Working with Onfido is a great example of two fintech companies working together to solve an all-too-common financial services problem. We are continually developing our own technology tools and systems in-house to make the borrower journey through our products simpler, faster and more efficient. Wherever it makes sense, we’ll always integrate these with other technology leaders’ complementary tools for the added benefit of our customers.”

Hussayn Kasai, Co-Founder & CEO of Onfido, added:

“We live in an increasingly online world, and in-person or paper-based processes are no longer fit for purpose. There’s increasing demand from both brokers and consumers for a fast, frictionless and secure lending experience, and we’re proud to work with market-leading companies like LendInvest to deliver that.”

LendInvest launched its first BTL product with a digital application process in November 2017. It has since announced several developments to satisfy growing customer demand for the product including a new online quotation calculator and rapid team expansion.

This announcement follows news in May that LendInvest has integrated global fintech leader Stripe’s digital payment services to take online valuation fee payments for BTL applications.