State-level registries are tired. API data is wired. And external data is inspired.

It’s possible to determine whether a U.S. business is valid — each state maintains a registry of incorporated entities, and they are all publicly accessible. 

But possible does not mean simple. Each state has its own method of tracking registered businesses. Some businesses are registered with a secretary of state. Others are tracked by a business entities office, or a department of state. Even the word “state” can be misleading, because four states describe themselves as a “commonwealth.”  

If an organization needs to verify the legitimacy of multiple corporations — for processes like Know Your Business (KYB) compliance or onboarding Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) merchants — checking each individual state’s registry becomes a labor-intensive bottleneck. 

One API, Multiple Results

The Demyst platform offers access to multiple sources of information through a single API, which includes recipes that combine multiple sources of data for improved accuracy. The U.S. Business Registration Check recipe returns an Employer Identification Number (EIN) and state registry number for any valid business. 

Although API-enabled lookups are an effective way to reduce compliance costs, the data that is available in state registries may be limited. Other data products, like OpenCorporates, can return additional information that includes officers related to the company and a summary of other data such as trademarks, payments from governments, or additional business addresses. 

For companies outside of the United States, Kompany is a source of business registry numbers and other details. Sayari specializes in corporate hierarchy data from countries throughout Latin America, Middle East, Eurasia, and offshore financial centers.

External Data for a Deeper Understanding

Verifying the registry information for a business is a basic step for KYB processes. From there, companies should conduct other checks to spot fraudulent businesses, and they may want to examine the court judgments associated with a business for a better understanding of its ongoing obligations and overall litigation strategy.  

For lending decisions, financial institutions may want to look at geolocation data to understand a company’s foot traffic patterns and its customer base. Other external data sources can provide insights into a company’s business models and its prospects for the future. 

Organizations must understand which data sources are most relevant for their processes and integrate that information into their existing workflows. Demyst provides a certified external data ecosystem for every use case, including KYB processes and BNPL merchant onboarding.