Banks deposit “hand signatures” and adopt “electronic signatures” in banking transactions

Banks operating in the country have begun dispensing with the manual signature of customers, and shifting completely towards electronic signature via the digital identity platform, and then authentication via the official Central Bank platform in transactions, which requires the customer’s signature and documentation of information that includes details related to the customer’s account and which banks exchange between them.

An informed banking source, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that there are many documents that require the manual signature of the customer, and require his personal presence in the bank branch, indicating that this procedure applies to many banking transactions, so this initiative came to save time and effort, especially in light of the presence of a technical structure and strong government platforms that enjoy security and reliability, most notably the digital identity platform and the official Central Bank platform.

The source added to “Emirates Today”: “Currently, the customer’s signature is obtained by sending a document to the digital identity platform for signature, then authenticating the document and verifying its authenticity, through the Central Bank platform, and therefore there is no need for a manual signature or the presence of the customer.”

He pointed out that official government platforms can be used in the future in many banking transactions other than signing and authentication, as this will be helped by new initiatives, such as open finance, and the application of “Blockchain” technology in the country’s financial system, which reduces errors and speeds up operations, as well as verifying the identity of customers, reliable exchange of information, and reducing fraud.

Banking source:

• Currently, the customer’s signature is obtained by sending a document to the digital identity platform for signature, then authenticating the document through the Central Bank’s platform, and therefore there is no need for a manual signature or the presence of the customer.