Building trust with trust scores

At Money 20/20, you spoke about building trust through trust scores. Can you tell us more about this idea? What is the concept of a trust score, and what does it aim to achieve?

In my view, trust scores are a dynamic way to quantify confidence in a digital identity or transaction. Much like a credit score, a trust score aggregates multiple real-time signals, such as behavioural data, device integrity, and risk indicators—to produce a single, actionable metric. The trust score moves us beyond binary yes/no decisions to a more contextual, risk-based approach that adapts to the user and situation.

At Anonybit, biometrics serve as the foundation of the trust score. This is because biometrics uniquely bind the individual to the transaction, it’s not just about possessing a device or credential, but proving you are who you claim to be. Other signals—like device, location, transaction history, and behaviour, can augment the trust score, providing additional context to inform decisions. Together, this layered model helps organisations reduce fraud, streamline user experiences, and build a more resilient payments infrastructure.

From a technology perspective, how can trust scores be implemented?
What role could decentralise biometrics play in this process? Are there other emerging technologies that support the development and validation of trust in digital ecosystems?

From a technology perspective, trust scores are built by orchestrating real-time data from across the user journey—identity verification, device integrity, behavioural signals, and transaction history, to calculate a dynamic risk profile. The key is understanding how bad actors behave, spotting anomalies and manipulation attempts, while also recognising the patterns of legitimate users to minimise friction. This balance is what makes trust scores so powerful.

Technologies like decentralised biometrics play a critical role in this process. They enable platforms to bind the trust score directly to the individual, not just to a device or credential that can be stolen or spoofed. At Anonybit, we ensure biometric data is never stored in one place—our decentralised architecture fragments and distributes it, removing the central honeypot. This makes it far harder for attackers to exploit while enabling continuous, privacy-preserving identity assurance. When combined with advancements in AI-driven behaviour analysis, and real-time fraud intelligence, decentralised biometrics become the anchor for trust in modern digital ecosystems.

Many argue that technology alone is not enough. What role do traditional players — such as banks, governments, and bigtech companies — have in building and supporting trust frameworks? Are there global initiatives currently helping to advance trust in digital identity and finance that you can highlight?

Technology alone isn’t enough to build trust—traditional players like banks, governments, and bigtech companies are critical to creating the standards, governance, and accountability frameworks that make trust real and scalable. Banks, in particular, act as custodians of identity and financial access, while governments provide regulatory guardrails and identity infrastructure. Increasingly, we’re seeing regulators take more active roles—like in the UAE, Singapore, and elsewhere, mandating the elimination of OTPs—and shifting toward stronger, passwordless approaches.

At the same time, bigtech platforms and banks are backing global standards such as eIDAS 2.0, W3C’s decentralised identifiers, and NIST’s digital identity guidelines to promote privacy, portability, and interoperability. These initiatives are a step in the right direction, but this is not enough.  What’s really needed, especially given the rate of fraud and scams that we are seeing, is a deeper commitment to corporate social responsibility, ensuring that identity systems don’t just meet technical or regulatory requirements, but are truly secure, inclusive, and privacy-preserving by design.

Assuming validated trust scores are in place, what is their potential impact on financial empowerment? How can businesses leverage these trust scores as a competitive advantage in today’s fast-evolving digital economy?

Validated trust scores have the potential to unlock meaningful financial empowerment by reducing friction and risk across the entire digital economy. In cross-border payments and remittances—where trust is often the biggest barrier—trust scores can accelerate transactions by ensuring that both the sender and the receiver are verified and trustworthy. Imagine a global trust network where identities are continuously validated through biometrics and other real-time data, creating a seamless and secure foundation for moving money across borders. This is especially transformative for underserved populations who may lack traditional documentation but can build a high trust score through consistent, positive digital interactions.

For businesses, trust scores offer a distinct competitive advantage—especially in emerging areas like agentic commerce, where AI-driven agents transact on behalf of users. In these scenarios, validating the trustworthiness of both the human and the agent becomes essential. Authentication via trust scores allows agents to make real-time decisions improving user experiences while reducing risk.

There are so many other use cases and examples but ultimately, businesses that adopt trust scores as a strategic layer—not just a check the box compliance tool—will be best positioned to scale securely, serve broader audiences, and lead in a digital-first world.

About the author

Frances has been recognised on the Women in Fintech Power List 100 and Standout 45, 25 Most Influential Women Leaders in Biometric Digital Identity of 2025, SIA’s Women in Security Forum Power 100, Globee's Female Visionary Award, and as an Inspiring Female Founder. She also serves on several non-profit boards and spearheads monthly roundtables in fintech, payments, banking, and security in New York City.