KYC vs KYB: what partners need to know

If you're onboarding as a MoonPay partner, you'll come across two similar-sounding terms: KYC and KYB. They're related but cover different things. Here's the difference in plain terms.

KYC (Know Your Customer) is the process of verifying an individual's identity. It involves collecting and checking details like a person's name, address, and a government-issued ID, to confirm they are who they say they are.

As a regulated money service business, MoonPay performs KYC checks to verify identities and help prevent fraud and unauthorised transactions.

KYB (Know Your Business) is the equivalent process for a business. Instead of verifying one person, it looks at a company's legal setup, ownership structure, and registration to confirm the business is legitimate and operating within the rules.

As a MoonPay partner, the main process you'll go through is Business Verification (KYB) — we verify your company's legal documents, ownership, and registration. For the full document list and what to expect, see Business Verification (KYB) for partners: documents and what to expect.

Your end customers — the people who buy or sell crypto through your app or website — complete their own KYC with MoonPay when they transact. That's a separate process from your business onboarding.

If a customer asks why they need to verify with MoonPay when they've already verified with you, it's because MoonPay, as the regulated provider facilitating the transaction, is required to verify each customer's identity directly.

If you're unsure which check applies to a given step, just ask Nova — our AI assistant, right there in your dashboard. Nova gives instant answers to most questions, and if it can't resolve something on its own, it'll create a support request and pass it to our partner support team for you.
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