Know the entity. Know who may act.

A consistent legal-entity reference

An LEI is a unique 20-character alphanumeric identifier under the ISO 17442 standard. It links an organisation to reference information that can help match its identity across records and systems.

A common identifier is useful when invoices, contracts and payment instructions contain variations of a name. It does not establish a banking licence, creditworthiness or the enforceability of an invoice. Those questions require additional evidence.

Separate identity from authority

The entity, the person and the person’s permission need separate assessment. Documentary review remains necessary to understand the transaction and the relevant legal mandate.

Public parent data has a defined scope

GLEIF Level 2 records cover direct and ultimate accounting-consolidating parent relationships, with relevant exceptions. They do not constitute a complete map of every shareholder, beneficial owner or controller.

For banking due diligence, ownership and control questions need the relevant customer and official records. A public relationship can be one source in that file. Its absence or exception should be understood rather than replaced with an assumption.

vLEI is an external role-credential standard

The verifiable LEI connects organisational identity with digitally verifiable role credentials. It provides an external standards context for considering organisation, person and role together.

WAB BankID and RTX are elements of its own development design. The supplied material does not establish vLEI issuer qualification, GLEIF affiliation or a deployed integration. The architectural concepts can be researched without claiming those statuses.

Records must be maintained

Identity and authority information can change. Reference dates, source records, exceptions and a correction process make the change visible. Data quality includes currency, consistency, validity and provenance.

In cross-border trade, clear entity matching helps connect a contract party to a payment party. Screening, legal checks, the payment rail, foreign exchange and settlement still require their own processes.