LONDON, Jan. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Sumsub, a global leader in identity verification and fraud prevention, today announced it has joined the World Economic Forum’s Unicorn Community, an exclusive, invite-only program for private high-growth companies valued at over $1 billion and shaping the future of the digital economy. Sumsub Co-founder and CEO Andrew Sever will attend the 2026 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, contributing expertise on digital trust, AI-driven fraud, and inclusive access to digital services.
Sumsub’s inclusion comes as identity fraud reaches new levels of sophistication. According to the Sumsub Identity Fraud Report 2025–2026, sophisticated fraud grew 180% year over year, with multi-step attacks increasing from 10% in 2024 to 28% in 2025 of all identity fraud. These attacks now span the entire customer lifecycle, making one-time checks ineffective and requiring continuous, real-time protection.
With more than 4,000 clients worldwide and millions of identity checks performed annually, Sumsub brings hands-on, global experience to the WEF community. At WEF’s 2026 Annual Meeting, the company will focus on three priorities: combating AI-powered fraud at scale, expanding digital inclusion through smarter verification, and shaping next-generation AI anti-fraud solutions through global collaboration.
Fighting sophisticated AI fraud at scale
As fraud rapidly evolves, Sumsub is focused on countering complex, AI-powered threats, including deepfakes, synthetic identities, and large-scale money mulling operations. Sumsub addresses these risks through end-to-end event monitoring across the entire user journey, and by developing next-generation defenses against AI fraud agents, autonomous systems capable of executing coordinated attacks with minimal human involvement.
Empowering digital inclusion through smarter verification
Sumsub is also advancing digital inclusion by reducing identity barriers that exclude legitimate users from the digital economy. Its Non-Document Verification and Reusable Identity suite enable secure onboarding in markets with poor-quality documents or higher fraud risk, helping users globally to get access to digital services and businesses expand without compromising compliance or security. Through initiatives such as Greenflag, part of the UN SDG Leaders Programme, Sumsub raises awareness of digital exclusion as a structural risk to global economic growth.
Shaping the future of AI anti-fraud through collaboration
To address emerging threats like deepfakes, Sumsub is investing in long-term solutions through research and global cooperation. Its AI Academic Program, launched in 2025, brings together industry and academia, including Nanyang Technological University (Singapore), to develop technologies such as deepfake detection and image protection. Sumsub also collaborates with global institutions, including Interpol through initiatives such as SynthWave, to raise awareness of new fraud typologies and strengthen cross-border responses to AI-enabled crime.
“We are grateful to join the World Economic Forum Unicorn Community at a moment when trust in the digital world is being fundamentally tested,” said Andrew Sever, co-founder and CEO of Sumsub. “AI is reshaping both fraud and defense, and our mission is to stay ahead of these threats while fighting digital exclusion and empowering people everywhere to access digital services safely and fairly.”
Verena Kuhn, Head of Innovator Communities, World Economic Forum, added: “We are pleased to welcome Sumsub to the World Economic Forum Unicorn Community. Sumsub’s work at the intersection of digital trust, fraud prevention, and inclusion reflects the type of innovation needed to build a secure and resilient digital economy, and we look forward to their contributions to our global initiatives.”
As part of the World Economic Forum Unicorn Community, Sumsub will work alongside global leaders in government, business, and civil society to help shape a more secure, inclusive, and trustworthy digital economy.
About the World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum, committed to improving the state of the world, is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.
Sumsub is a leading full-cycle verification platform that enables fraud-free, scalable compliance. Its adaptive, no-code solution covers everything from identity and business verification to ongoing monitoring – quickly adjusting to evolving risks, regulations, and market demands.
Recognized as a Leader by Gartner, Liminal, and KuppingerCole, Sumsub combines seamless integration with advanced fraud prevention to deliver industry-leading performance.
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