VERA, a secure business communications platform, has partnered with decentralized identity specialist cheqd to develop a blockchain-based messaging platform designed to prevent fraud in corporate communications. The system is set to launch in South Africa by August 2025, with a beta phase beginning this month. It will allow businesses to authenticate their counterparts in real time using verifiable digital credentials.
Combatting Invoice Fraud with Decentralized Identity
The new platform integrates key technologies from cheqd’s decentralized identity stack, including Verifiable Credentials (VCs), AnonCreds, and Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs). By leveraging these tools, the platform ensures that all participants in a conversation—whether individuals or companies—can prove their identities cryptographically, reducing the risk of impersonation and invoice fraud.
“VERA solves a genuine problem which affects ourselves and every company worldwide: invoice manipulation fraud,” said Fraser Edwards, Co-Founder and CEO of cheqd. “Every week we receive invoices by email attempting to defraud us. VERA’s solution ensures that every company and individual on the platform are verified.”
Fraudulent communications continue to plague global business operations. An estimated 3.4 billion scam emails are sent each day. In Africa alone, cybersecurity firm Check Point reports that one in every 15 organizations experienced a ransomware attempt each week during the first quarter of 2023.
Secure Messaging That Meets Global Standards
The VERA platform combines end-to-end encryption with digital identity verification to protect sensitive communications. Its architecture complies with key regulatory frameworks, including Europe’s eIDAS 2.0, making it suitable for companies operating across jurisdictions with strict identity assurance requirements.
“At VERA, we believe secure communication should also be verifiable,” said Max Coleman, Co-Founder of VERA. “cheqd’s infrastructure allows us to not only protect conversations, but to prove the identity of participants in a way that’s scalable, privacy-respecting, and future-ready.”
Following the initial South African launch, VERA plans to expand into the European Union, United States, and United Kingdom. The platform is targeting sectors particularly vulnerable to fraud, such as construction, procurement, and finance—industries where document verification and supplier authentication are critical for security and compliance.
The partnership builds on cheqd’s broader efforts to promote decentralized identity systems as scalable, secure solutions for the digital economy. VERA, which was founded after winning Discovery Group’s 2023 Hackathon, previously developed a secure messaging prototype and proof of concept for reusable KYC credentials. The new platform marks its most significant product launch to date.
Sources: IT News Africa, CryptoNews.net
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
