Isle of Man Digital ID Firm SQR Enters Liquidation

SQR Limited, an Isle of Man digital identity verification company, has entered creditors’ voluntary liquidation following an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders on Monday, and all of its customer data has been deleted.

The company’s board and executive leadership terminated services on July 31, after a funding round launched to support the next phase of product development failed to raise the capital required. Gordon Wilson of FRP Advisory has been appointed liquidator. SQR was first registered in June 2021 and certified in 2023.

The closure removes a verification service from an Isle of Man government registry. SQR won a contract in June 2024 to provide independent digital identity verification for Central Registry, where its platform checked that beneficial owners were who they claimed to be by validating data held on the registry. That service for submitting beneficial ownership notifications ended on July 31. The Department for Enterprise said notifications already processed remain valid and require no further action, that Central Registry will continue accepting new notifications through its existing procedures, and that it will seek to procure an alternative online option in the coming months.

The department also confirmed it had provided funding support to SQR through its business support schemes, on terms it said it will now review in light of the circumstances of the closure. It declined to disclose the value of the Central Registry contract, saying doing so could prejudice future procurement.

“The closure of any Isle of Man business, and any resulting loss of roles, is never welcome,” a Department for Enterprise spokesperson said, adding that Digital Isle of Man would signpost affected staff to support and that demand for skills across the island economy should help them find other work.

In a statement, SQR said building a safer and more inclusive digital world had been a privilege and thanked customers, partners, suppliers and staff.

The certified verification market SQR operated in has been reshaped by shifting UK policy, from the publication of the Digital Verification Services Trust Framework to the decision to scrap the national digital ID plan, while providers such as Signicat continue to gain certification.

Sources: Manx Radio, Isle of Man Today

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By Ali Nassar-Smith