iAM Smart is the one-stop personalised digital services platform of the Hong Kong Government, launched in December 2020 and run by the Digital Policy Office. Any holder of a Hong Kong identity card aged 11 or above may register in the app, with a guardian's consent for those under 18. The basic account provides authentication and form filling with the personal data held by the government; iAM Smart+ adds a digital signature with legal effect under the Electronic Transactions Ordinance (Cap. 553), after a further identity check during registration.
Public and private organisations can connect to iAM Smart. A customer taps a button on the organisation's site or scans a QR code, sees in the app who is asking and what will be shared, and authorises it. The organisation receives the data as confirmed by the government, not as typed by the customer.
Why it matters for KYC
Schedule 2 of the AMLO accepts verification through a recognised digital identification system, and the HKMA, the SFC and the Insurance Authority have each said how iAM Smart may be used for account opening. Verification through iAM Smart is non-face-to-face without the extra measure that a scanned document would need, because there is no image to forge.
How Fill Easy relates to it
iAM Smart verification through GovVerify returns the name, HKID number, date of birth and residential address the resident authorises in the app, marked as confirmed by the government, with the source and time recorded. Syfe Hong Kong and Chocolate Finance onboard Hong Kong customers this way; their case studies describe what changed.