Unico — KYC & AML

Unico — KYC & AML logo
Brazilian IDTech founded in 2007 with headquarters in São Paulo and a valuation of USD 2.6 billion, its IDCloud platform authenticated 75% of bettors in the Brazilian regulated market with proprietary facial biometrics and a database covering 99% of bettors.
## The first Brazilian IDTech turned into a segment unicorn Unico was born in 2007 as Acesso Digital, founded in São Paulo by Diego Martins, Paulo Alencastro and Rui Jordão. The company pivoted toward digital identity in 2017 with the acquisition of Arkivus from Londrina, a facial biometric reading specialist. In 2020 it changed its commercial name to Unico, received R$ 40 million from Igah Ventures and then more than R$ 580 million from General Atlantic and SoftBank Latin America Fund. In 2021 it became a Brazilian unicorn with the R$ 625 million Series C led by the same funds plus Ribbit Capital and Big Bets. The most recently published valuation exceeds USD 2.6 billion, and the employee base went from 180 in May 2020 to more than 750 in 2025. The main headquarters are at Av. Olavo Fontoura 1209 in the Santana neighbourhood of São Paulo, with additional offices in Rio de Janeiro, Londrina, Porto Alegre and Bebedouro. ## The IDCloud platform with coverage of 99% of Brazilian bettors Unico's technological proposition concentrates on IDCloud, a digital identity platform based on facial biometrics and artificial intelligence. The engine applies more than 96 signals to confirm authenticity in real time, includes vector search for fast and accurate facial matching, document verification, device security and DeepFake Shield to mitigate impersonation with synthetic video. A distinctive piece of the product is document reuse: the first successful validation at any Unico client enables the user to use that verified identity at other ecosystem platforms without resending documents. This architecture is relevant for iGaming because the Unico database already covers 99% of Brazilian bettors, which means that for the vast majority of new registrations the operator does not start a KYC from scratch but executes an authentication against an already validated identity, reducing registration friction from minutes to seconds. ## Dominant positioning in the Brazilian regulated iGaming market Unico's strategic move toward the Brazilian iGaming market accelerated with Law 14,790/2023 and the obligation of facial biometrics for bettor authentication. By the start of 2025 the company had already authenticated approximately 75% of bettors in the regulated market. In the first three months post-regulation, 14 operators switched their previous KYC provider to Unico, a number that scaled to 29 operators in six months. Confirmed clients include EstrelaBet (Fellipe Fraga, CBO) and Esportes Gaming Brasil (Hugo Baungartner, CBO). The team dedicated to the segment includes Tadeu Arantes (Head of Sales Solutions), Evandro Ernani (Director of Engineering), Luis Felipe Monteiro (VP of Institutional Relations) and Fernanda Beato (Sales Director). Unico commissioned an Ipsos study in 2025 that revealed 11% of Brazilian minors bet online, data the company uses as an institutional basis to push for the obligation of robust KYC on legal platforms and combat clandestine sites. ## International acquisitions and expanded stack for global operators Beyond the core Brazil product, Unico deployed an aggressive internationalisation strategy based on acquisitions. It bought Trully in Mexico, Oz Forensics in the United Arab Emirates (forensic deepfake detection specialist) and OwnID (global leader in passkey technology). The result is active presence in more than 23 countries, with LatAm focus for regional iGaming operators that need consistent cross-border KYC. Four of the five largest Brazilian banks and seven of the ten largest brands in the country are Unico clients, an adoption density that in practice facilitates the reuse of validated identities for iGaming without building new bases. The company maintains institutional presence at SBC Summit Lisbon, BiS SiGMA South America and other segment events, with panels on KYC and conversion, age verification and combating minor gaming. For a Brazilian iGaming operator operating under Law 14,790 and looking for a provider with the largest validated identity base in the country, capacity to reduce registration friction and consolidated institutional network, Unico is the reference option of the segment.
Unico - Technical Sheet
Founded2007
HQAv. Olavo Fontoura 1209, Santana, São Paulo, SP
CountryBrasil
CitySão Paulo
Employees750+
LicensesCumplimiento Lei 14.790/2023 Brasil, LGPD
CertificationsUnicórnio brasileño desde 2021 (valuación USD 2.6B+), Primera IDTech brasileña, Top of Mind RH (admisión digital)
ProductsUnico IDCloud (digital identity platform), Facial biometric authentication with 96+ real-time signals, Vector search for facial matching, DeepFake Shield (synthetic video mitigation), Cross-platform document reuse, Database with 99% of Brazilian bettors validated, 75% of regulated market authenticated, Document verification and device security, Sigap integration and Law 14,790 compliance, Cross-border operation in 23+ countries
Webhttps://unico.io

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