Given its advantages, he pointed out that electronic signatures are not exclusive to the financial sector, but that their uses are also applied at the commercial, real estate, judicial processes, public administration, and other levels.
SANTO DOMINGO.- The Dominican Republic's Multiple Banking Association (ABA) announced this Friday that it has made its qualified digital signature provider services available to its members, the financial market, and productive sectors, including SMEs, as part of the banking sector's commitment to innovation and digital transformation.
With this initiative, he explained, the aim is to streamline and expedite services, while also improving the user experience. He emphasized that documents signed using this technology have the same legal validity as handwritten documents, in accordance with current legislation and regulations in the Dominican Republic.
The ABA explained that, in order to offer this service, the association has been subjected to a series of audits and validations both at the national level, by the Dominican Institute of Telecommunications (INDOTEL), and at the international level by the firms that provide digital signatures and certificates, which guarantee the legal and technological security of this service.
He explained that one of the main advantages of electronic signatures is that they allow agreements, contracts, and business deals to be signed without the signatories being present, thus allowing clients abroad (especially in the United States and the European Union) to carry out banking procedures without traveling to the Dominican Republic.
The entity that brings together the country's multiple banks clarified that, as a preliminary step, it is necessary to carry out the digital onboarding or authentication process, that is, the verification that the person signing is who they claim to be.
“Both technologies bring value to the customer and the financial intermediation entity, contributing to the generation of financial products and services that do not require the physical presence of users, eliminating long lines and unnecessary operating costs for individuals and financial intermediation institutions,” the ABA stated.
Given its advantages, he pointed out that electronic signatures are not exclusive to the financial sector, but that their uses are also applied at the commercial, real estate, judicial processes, public administration, and other levels.
“Digital transformation is increasingly adopting new forms to make life easier and more comfortable for human beings, generating efficiencies, reducing costs and enabling new business models that were previously unimaginable,” he said.
In this regard, the ABA noted that the banking sector has been a leader in the use of digital tools, with significant investments in exponential technologies, including Machine Learning, Big Data and Artificial Intelligence.
He noted that these technologies help improve communication, understand the behavior of financial users, and offer products tailored to specific requirements.
About digital signatures
In the Dominican Republic, the implementation and regulation of electronic signatures has been established since 2002 in Law 126-02 on Electronic Commerce, Documents, and Digital Signatures; Decree 335-03, which approves the regulations for the application of the aforementioned law; and Resolution No. 071-19 issued by the Dominican Institute of Telecommunications (INDOTEL), which dictates the complementary regulations.
