What happens between “open an account” and “account open”

Step 1 — Who you are (CIP / KYC)

Federal law requires every financial institution to run a customer identification program: your name, date of birth, address, and identification number, verified against reliable sources before an account opens. This is what the industry calls KYC — know your customer. It usually completes in minutes; when a document needs a second look, a person looks.

Step 2 — What your entity is (KYB)

Accounts opened by a company, trust, or fund get the entity equivalent: formation and good standing confirmed, and the people who ultimately own or control the entity — its ultimate beneficial owners — identified. Shell structures do not get to hide their principals from a custodian.

Step 3 — Due diligence and screening

Every customer receives baseline customer due diligence: the nature of the relationship, expected activity, and screening against sanctions and watchlists, including OFAC. Higher-risk profiles — politically exposed persons, unusual funding sources — receive enhanced due diligence: more questions, closer review.

Step 4 — It never really ends (KYT and ongoing monitoring)

Verification does not stop at opening. Transactions are monitored on an ongoing basis — know your transactions — and identity is re-checked when events warrant it (a sanctions-list update, a change of ownership) rather than only on a calendar. That event-driven approach is what the industry calls perpetual KYC.

What we will never ask for

We will never ask for your password, a one-time code, or remote access to your device — by phone, text, or email. Anyone who does is not us. See fraud prevention for the patterns to watch for.

This page describes the verification process generally; specific requirements vary by account type and applicable law. Nothing here is legal advice.