It's no news that validating business addresses for compliance purposes is critical for keeping accurate records, satisfying regulatory obligations, and running a smooth business today. The process of business address verification aids several compliance purposes and is a basic step in many compliance procedures.

What is Business Address Verification?

Business address verification and validation refers to the process of confirming the accuracy, authenticity, and legitimacy of a business's physical address. It entails validating that the provided address information corresponds to a real and operational business location rather than a fake one. It ensures that businesses are accurately represented and comply with regulations and maintain trustworthy records.

Why is Business Address Verification Important for Businesses?

The following reasons discussed in detail are some of the significance of business address verification for businesses. 

1. Mitigating Fraud and Identity Theft

One of the core reasons that iterates the significance of business address verification is the mitigation of fraud and identity theft that can occur as a result of inadequate business verification and validation.

Verifying that the provided address corresponds to a legitimate business location helps validate the authenticity of the business. It, therefore, reduces the likelihood of engaging in transactions with fraudulent businesses, protecting both the business and its customers from potential financial losses and reputational damage.

2. Improving Data Accuracy

Address verification helps to improve the overall data integrity and accuracy of a business. This is because it ensures that addresses are real and correctly formatted. Because of this, there are accurate analytics, better decision-making, and improved operational efficiency.

3. Business Verification Aids Compliance

Industries have specific regulations and compliance regulations for entities operating within them that are related to address verification. Financial institutions, such as banks and fintech companies, are required to comply with KYC regulations, and it involves verifying customer addresses to prevent money laundering, identity fraud, and other related activities. 

Adhering to business verification requirements can help businesses demonstrate their commitment to regulatory compliance, avoid sanctions and manage a positive reputation.

4. Aids Effective Communication

Validating and validating business addresses ensures that firms are able to communicate with their customers effectively. Accurate address information aids in the delivery of bills, marketing materials, product shipments, and other critical communications to the intended recipients. 

This reduces mistakes, increases customer satisfaction, and improves the whole customer experience. This applies to B2B transactions and partnerships in this context.

5. Preserves Public Trust

Maintaining accurate address information and validating business addresses helps companies to create a strong brand reputation and trust among consumers and partners. It demonstrates a dedication to competence, attention to detail, and data accuracy. Customers and partners are more inclined to trust and interact with companies that provide accurate address information.

6. Optimized Mailing Processes

Address verification is important in organizing efficient mailing processes. Firms can reduce returned mail and costs associated with undeliverable mail and improve mailing efficiency by ensuring that addresses are legitimate and effectively typed. This leads to cost savings and enhanced output.

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How to Validate and Verify Business Addresses for Compliance Processes

Here is a step-by-step guide on how to validate and verify business addresses for compliance: 

1. Collect Complete and Accurate Address Information

It is important to collect complete and accurate address information for the businesses being transacted with or partnered with. The street address, city, state/province, postal code, and country are all should be provided by the intending business. Instead of depending exclusively on user inputs, standardized address fields should be incorporated into the data collection process.

2. Address Validation Services

Businesses can make use of address validation services offered by trustworthy companies or postal authorities. These services assist businesses in standardizing and validating addresses against government databases, ensuring that they are valid and properly formed. 

Youverify provides company address verification services to clients in all 36 states of Nigeria, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Accessing this portal gives you this service. On that portal, you can create candidates, search for candidates, retrieve and request address verification; you can also check for address history. Youverify also offers company verification services.

3. Verify Legal Company Names

Verify and ensure that the company name provided matches government records in the appropriate government agencies that perform regulatory oversight. For example, personnel or individuals can easily search for company names or titles on the CAC portal in a public search. All that needs to be done is to go to the CAC's website. Scroll down to "Public Search" and click it. In the search box, enter the RC Number of the firm you want to look up (if it is known) or the entire name of the company and press the "Search" button.

4. Utilising Geocoding Services

Geocoding services transform addresses into geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude). Geocoding allows for the cross-reference of an address with other data and validates it against recognized geographical places.

5. Verify Addresses With Local Authorities

Contact local government authorities or appropriate business registries to confirm the validity of the business and its address. This is especially important when working with overseas addresses.

6. Addresses Can Be Validated With Licence Checks

Based on the industry and country, some licenses and permits may be required for firms to operate legally. Check to see if the company in question has the required licenses to operate.

7. Site Visits Can Be Considered

For crucial business connections, particularly in B2B contexts, conducting site visits can be considered to confirm the physical existence and operations of the company. At least this way, there can be physical proof of an address. However, this may not be applicable to all situations. It is best used for crucial business connections.

8. Regularly update and revalidate

Business addresses may change over time due to relocation or other factors. To preserve compliance and correctness, update and revalidate the addresses in your database on a regular basis.
 

Achieving Business Verification with The Youverify KYB Solution

The Youverify global KYB Solution helps you establish a business's legitimacy and its beneficial ownership. This way, you can adequately assess the risks they pose and take preventive measures or completely cut ties with them depending on their legal standing and AML sanctions.
 

The Youverify Global KYB solution helps your business achieve the following: 

• See in real-time, relevant updates to the registration of a company - including the newest board members.
• Verify the legal existence and details of beneficiaries of the company. This gives you a deeper view of their affiliations for a more elaborate risk assessment.
• As a B2B business, it helps you understand who you are dealing with better.
• It gives Youverify a wider reach. Global coverage means you don’t have to use several data sources when performing company searches in different countries and jurisdictions across the globe. 

Book a demo session today to see how Youverify can help automate your business’s KYC Due Diligence! Also, feel free to contact us here for any questions.

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What Information Can I Check with the Youverify Global KYB Solution? 

The advanced search provides customers with extensive information on the company which includes: 

1. Company Information
2. The total shares value of the company
3.  A breakdown of the value of the shares for all individual shareholders, while also highlighting the person(s) of significant control
4. All the Key personnel associated with the business and their designation
5. Other associated companies of key personnel
6. Affiliated companies
7. Company history and Filings
    

How to Verify Business Addresses For Compliance

We recommend that you leverage a engage reliable verification service provider to verify business addresses for swift operation. 

Here, we will be taking you on a step-by-step journey on how businesses can perform business address verification using Youverify’s solution: 

Step 1: Create an account and login to the Youverify platform

Step 2: Navigate to “Business Verification” on the left side of your home page

Step 3: Select “ Check”

Step 4: Select either “Company Search” (gives you basic company information) or “Advanced Company Search” (gives you elaborate information including details on shareholders and other affiliated entities)

Step 5: Fill up the requested information like “Country”, “Registration Number”, “Company Name”, etc and click “Search”. 

Detailed information about the business will be displayed including the business’s address for validation and verification. 

Final Thoughts

Businesses benefit from validating and verifying business addresses for regulatory requirements in a variety of ways. Businesses can collect complete and accurate address information, use address validation services, verify legal company names, use geocoding services, contact local authorities or business registries, check licenses, consider site visits, and regularly update and revalidate addresses to validate and verify business addresses. These processes ensure that businesses have accurate and authentic address information, that they are in compliance with legislation, and that they keep reliable records.

Companies can improve their brand, develop trust, eliminate risks, and maintain smooth company operations by prioritizing business address verification. Accurate and validated business addresses help to build a robust compliance framework, provide better customer experiences, and increase overall business performance.

See how 100+ leading companies use Youverify for KYC and AML screening of customers for compliance and real-time risk detection. Request a demo today.