Andreas, what were the highlights for Procivis in the reporting year?
We achieved a lot in 2024. For instance, we launched “Procivis One”, our all-in-one, ready to-deploy solution for digital identities and credentials. We also successfully implemented various customer projects, including for the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the city of Zug.
And we launched our wallet for digital identities and credentials in the Apple and Google app stores. A test environment for potential customers was also set up. In addition to the wallet, a mobile app for verification of digital credentials, called “Verifier”, has been available since 2024. Last but not least, we published the source code for our solution under an open-source licence.
Why was the source code released?
The eIDAS 2.0 regulation, adopted by the EU in 2024, stipulates that solutions must be open source, as does the new draft law for the government-issued eID in Switzerland. This is because governments and authorities want to remain independent of the big technology companies, and software is considered to be more trustworthy and secure if anyone can check it for back doors and potential flaws.
A provider that wants to have an effect in the public sector must make its source data transparent.
What was the market launch of Procivis One like for you?
We are focusing on three markets: Europe with eIDAS 2.0, Switzerland as our home market and, since 2024, the US with the DHS project. All three markets are different. But the one thing they have in common is that they are still in development and there are no established competitors yet.
Europe set the ball rolling in 2024 with the adoption of the eIDAS 2.0 legislation. All member countries must implement the new regulation within two years. The time for waiting and pilot projects is now definitely over.
In the last few months and weeks of 2024, we felt the market gaining momentum. We invested a great deal of time in promoting Procivis One in Europe, and our efforts are now paying off.
What does the solution package developed by Procivis look like?
We have created Procivis One with six qualities that make our product unique.
The first is that our solution is 100% flexible and independent of future technical standards that are only slowly emerging, such as for protocols. This ensures that our customers have a future-proof solution.
Second, our solution is enormously scalable, meaning it would work in countries with millions of potential users and millions on millions of digital credentials.
Third, we guarantee secure and long-term support aligned with the needs of public authorities and private businesses. This is important because the eIDs have a lifespan of 10 to 20 years. Customers can see us as a reliable partner that will still be around in 20 years from now.
Fourth, our software can be installed on different systems and in different locations, such as a government data centre, in a cloud environment or on a company’s server. We are not reliant on major providers such as Amazon, Google or Microsoft. This is hugely important in the public sector.
Fifth, Procivis One meets all the requirements of “privacy by design”. This means that the user’s personal data is stored only on the user’s smartphone.
What happens if I lose my smartphone?
What do you do if you lose your driving licence? You contact the relevant authority and order a replacement. That’s also how it works with a mobile driving licence. We provide the technology. When, how quickly and how easily you can get your driving licence back is up to the issuer – in this case, the driver and vehicle licensing office.
This brings me to the sixth feature of Procivis One. We provide all the components for issuing, storing and verifying digital identities or credentials; we support the verification requirements of many different organisations, such as a bank when opening an account or a car rental company that needs to know whether you have a valid driving licence.
The combination of these six qualities makes Procivis One unique on the market and opens up countless potential applications.
Which customers are you targeting, and what does the future hold for Procivis One?
Business to government, or B2G, is the clear focus for 2025. Authoritites provide the basic infrastructure without which there would be no private sector.
Our timing is perfect. Regulation in the EU is now coming into effect, as we anticipated. In contrast to Switzerland, every country in Europe has had a government-recognised digital ID system for many years. The EU eIDAS 2.0 regulation will not simply replace the established systems. They will run in parallel for the next 10 to 15 years in order to exploit the significant investments made in recent years. That’s why we offer EU countries technical solutions to adapt their existing systems to the new legal requirements.
As soon as the infrastructure is in place, we will of course turn to the private sector, such as banks, telecommunications companies and many other industries – whoever wants to issue and verify credentials. Momentum will start to build in the private sector as soon as the public sector has established the foundations.