EyeVerify announces name change, new product offering in Asia

Nearly a year after being acquired by Ant Financial for more than $100 million, Kansas City-based EyeVerify wants its new vision reflected in a new name.

The biometrics tech firm is changing its name from EyeVerify to Zoloz, EyeVerify CEO Toby Rush wrote in a recent company blog post. The company, which at this time declined to offer more information about the name change or Zoloz’s meaning, has yet to release new branding to reflect the switch.

Rush wrote that the move accounts for the firm’s more extensive approach with security offerings.

“We will also be changing our name to Zoloz to reflect our more comprehensive solution for trusted digital identity,” Rush wrote.

EyeVerify created the “EyePrint ID,” which transforms a selfie of a user’s eye into a biometric security key. It’s used by millions of people around the world to access mobile banking or other secure information. In September 2016, Ant Financial —  the payments affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding — purchased EyeVerify for more than $100 million. The deal is one of the metro’s most notable exits in the past decade.

The name change comes amid the firm’s ambitious expansion in Asia to quadruple its user base from 450 million to 2 billion people. Rush announced that the firm will be offering a new hosted identity platform that helps people manage their digital lives.

That platform will first be available in Asia as it evaluates how to offer it in North America and Europe, Rush said.

“The platform is centered around the idea that I am me, my phone should just know me, and my apps and services should know me – automatically, conveniently and securely,” he wrote. “Underserved and underbanked consumers in this region are moving to mobile so quickly that they have leapfrogged biometrics adoption and identity services in other geographies.”

Founded in 2012, EyeVerify has more than 60 staffers and raised more than $13 million in capital. Local investors in EyeVerify included Mid-America Angels, Women’s Capital Connection, Think Big Partners, Flyover Capital, Sprint and other private investors.