AML / KYC policy: identity checks, explained
Before any Auredane account can trade, we need to know who we are serving. This page explains our Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) procedures in full: what we ask for, why we ask, how long checks take and what happens if something does not match. The policy applies to every client in the United Kingdom without exception.
1. Introduction
KYC, AML and countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) procedures exist to stop financial services being misused for laundering criminal proceeds or moving illicit funds. For a client, they amount to a one-off verification at onboarding and occasional follow-up requests later. For us, they are a legal obligation and a condition of operating in the United Kingdom.
2. What KYC is
Know Your Customer means identifying each client and confirming the details they give us are genuine. In practice: your name, date of birth and address are checked against official documents, and the account is linked to one verified person. KYC is why your account cannot simply be sold or quietly handed to somebody else.
3. What AML is
Anti-Money Laundering work is continuous rather than one-off. It means assessing the risk each relationship presents, monitoring activity for patterns inconsistent with a client's profile, and escalating genuinely suspicious matters to the appropriate authorities. Monitoring is systematic, not personal: the same rules apply to every account.
Why verification is required, and what we ask for
4. Why your identity must be checked
Verification prevents fraudsters from opening accounts in other people's names, protects your money from being withdrawn by an impostor, keeps the platform compliant with applicable UK requirements, and reduces the risk that legitimate clients are affected by financial crime. It also underpins your complaint rights: rights attach to verified persons.
5. Documents you will provide
Identity: a current passport or full driving licence. Address: a bank statement, utility bill or council tax letter from the last three months in your name. Onboarding also includes a short selfie with your document to confirm liveness, so a stolen scan alone cannot pass. We only ask for documents we actually use.
How the process runs
Registration
You submit your name, email and phone number through the registration form.
Submission
With your manager's help, you upload the identity and address documents and the liveness selfie through the secure dashboard.
Automatic check
The system validates document format, expiry, readability and consistency with your entered details, usually within minutes.
Result
Most files clear automatically. A minority need a compliance reviewer's eye; either way, you are told the outcome and any next step by email.
7. Enhanced due diligence
Some situations call for a deeper look: unusually large first deposits, complex ownership of funds, connections to higher-risk countries or occupations, or activity that differs sharply from what onboarding suggested. Enhanced due diligence (EDD) can mean additional proof of the source of funds or wealth, a fuller explanation of expected activity, or refreshes of standard documents. EDD is not an accusation; it is proportionate caution applied to facts, and your manager will explain exactly what is needed.
8. How long checks take
Straightforward files usually clear the automatic stage within minutes and the whole process the same working day. Manual review adds one to two working days, and busy periods or incomplete uploads can extend that. Timing always depends on document quality and how quickly you respond to follow-up questions, so clear photographs of full, unexpired documents genuinely are the fastest route.
9. Why verification can be refused or paused
Checks fail when documents are expired, cropped or unreadable, when names or addresses do not match across records, when a document shows signs of alteration, when required information is withheld, or when sanctions or adverse-information screening returns a match that must be resolved. A pause is often just a better photograph away; support always tells you the specific reason and the specific fix, and you may re-submit.
10. Ongoing transaction monitoring
After onboarding, deposits, withdrawals and trading patterns are monitored against your profile. Significant changes, unusual destinations or structuring that looks designed to avoid thresholds can trigger review. While a review is open, certain functions, typically withdrawals, may be limited. We would rather explain a short delay than let a flagged transfer proceed unexamined.
11. Your responsibilities
You are responsible for providing accurate, current and genuine information, for updating us when your details change, and for acting only on your own behalf. Providing false information, using another person's documents, or allowing a third party to operate your account can lead to suspension or closure, forfeiture of platform access and, where the law requires, reports to the authorities.
12. Storage and protection of verification data
KYC and AML records are stored encrypted, with access limited to compliance personnel and retained for the periods UK law requires after a relationship ends. Full detail on retention periods, your rights over the data and how to exercise them is in the Privacy Policy, which should be read alongside this page.
13. Who verification data can reach
Only the categories of recipients the process needs: identity-verification providers, IT and hosting suppliers acting under contract, affiliated companies involved in operating the service, and regulators or public authorities where disclosure is legally required. There is no sale of personal data, and every recipient is bound by the handling terms described in the Privacy Policy.
14. The requirements we comply with
Auredane applies UK requirements relevant to a technology and information services platform of this kind: customer due diligence and monitoring proportionate to the business, data protection under the UK framework overseen by the ICO, and cooperation with lawful requests from authorities. The licensing and regulation page sets out the compliance areas in table form.
15. Questions about KYC or AML? Write to [email protected], marked for the attention of Client Support & Compliance. We answer during Monday to Friday, 9:00–17:30 GMT/BST (excluding public holidays), normally within usually under one business hour. If a check has paused your account, include your registered email and the date you submitted documents so the team can locate the file quickly.