How Product People Scaled KYC Conversion for a European Banking Unicorn

The Client: European Banking Unicorn

The European Banking Unicorn is a leading European digital bank providing a secure, frictionless banking experience to millions of customers across the continent. Operating in a compliance-intensive fintech environment, the bank serves a high-volume B2C market with a strategic focus on customer onboarding and identity verification. The German market is a key growth segment where KYC completion rates directly drive customer acquisition performance for the marketing team.

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The Mission: Interim Senior PM, KYC & Onboarding Funnel (Customer Identity)

Product People embedded an Interim Senior Product Manager into European Banking Unicorn's Customer Identity segment at a pivotal moment: three Customer Identity squads were simultaneously without product managers. We stepped in as PM for one squad, with a mandate to sustain day-to-day operations and deliver a short-term vision focused on improving KYC conversion through a multi-method, multi-option identity verification strategy. We worked closely with engineering, design, data, business, and product leadership stakeholders.

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Our Main Quest: Validating a Multi-Method KYC Strategy at Scale

Launch: Onboarded Fast and Built Immediate Momentum

Clear delivery momentum was established within the first two weeks by documenting expectations and mapping OKRs from day one, anchoring the engagement to the business outcome that mattered most: KYC completion rates in the German market.

Explore and Conquer: Three Conversion Opportunities Identified and Driven

The ABCD multivariant experiment validated the multi-method strategy and surfaced three distinct conversion opportunities, each requiring focused discovery and delivery work.

Initiative 1: Open Banking Integration to Eliminate BAV Drop-Off

Problem: The ABCD experiment confirmed that a multi-method approach improved conversion for German nationals, but Bank Account Verification (BAV) was underperforming for non-EU nationals at the manual transfer step, where users had to leave the app, open their external bank, manually enter an IBAN, complete a transfer, and return to finish verification.

What we did:

• Validated a multi-method, multi-option KYC strategy for the German market by running the ABCD multivariant experiment
• Enabled a controlled volume ramp and produced reliable conversion benchmarks by resolving a BAV tracking data discrepancy
• Reduced manual transfer friction by selecting an Open Banking integration approach based on SEPA Credit Transfer support and the ability to pre-define IBAN and amount
• Aligned Business, the engineering team, and the Payments team on scope and integration approach
• Prepared conversion measurement ahead of handover by designing a three-variant A/B test, securing budget approval, and launching sandbox development

Initiative 2: Unlocking KYC for Non-EU Nationals via D-Type Sticker Visa

Problem: Non-EU nationals arriving in Germany without a residence permit were excluded from existing KYC flows and were unable to open bank accounts through traditional channels. This high-potential user segment had no viable identity verification path.

What we did:

• Expanded onboarding access for D-type sticker visa holders by accelerating inherited discovery into a new identity verification path
• Moved the initiative toward delivery by partnering with the incoming Identity Orchestration PM and the engineering team to complete discovery
• Protected delivery momentum by structuring a clean handover to the new full-time Identity Orchestration PM
• Created a verified onboarding path for a previously excluded user segment by progressing the D-type sticker visa feature to launch during the final week of the engagement

Initiative 3: Geolocation and VPN Fraud Prevention

Problem: The bank faced a compliance and fraud risk from users who could sign up with fake German addresses via VPN or geolocation spoofing, creating regulatory exposure in the German market.

What we did:

• Strengthened fraud prevention by consolidating checks and balances across third-party providers
• Balanced fraud reduction against conversion trade-offs by partnering with the compliance team to assess user impact before implementation
• Created a defensible path to launch by structuring the geolocation blocking rollout around the highest-risk segments first

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Mini-Missions: Our Side Quests

1. Multi-Method Strategy Validated via ABCD Experiment: Improved German market conversion confidence by running a multivariant experiment across identity verification methods, generating the first data confirming that a multi-method approach outperformed a single-method flow for German nationals.
2. Roadmap Restructured Around KYC OKRs: Aligned business and product stakeholders around KYC completion rate objectives by restructuring the Q2 roadmap with defined initiatives and epics.
3. Structured Handover for Mission Continuity: Protected mission continuity by producing a comprehensive handover document covering open threads across BAV, Open Banking, D-type visa onboarding, and geolocation blocking.

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Mission Achievements: Delivered Outcomes

Increased confidence in a multi-method KYC strategy by validating multiple identity verification options for German nationals through the ABCD multivariant experiment.

Reduced Bank Account Verification friction by shaping an Open Banking integration approach for the manual transfer step.

Improved conversion benchmark reliability by resolving a BAV tracking data discrepancy and enabling a controlled volume ramp.

Expanded onboarding access for non-EU nationals by progressing the D-type sticker visa path through discovery, handover, and launch readiness.

Reduced compliance and fraud risk by structuring a geolocation and VPN blocking rollout focused on the highest-risk segments first.