Baselayer Raises $35M to Build Identity Verification System for AI Agents Acting on Behalf of Businesses

Baselayer Secures $35 Million Series A Funding for AI Agents Trust Infrastructure

Baselayer, a San Francisco-based startup specializing in business identity verification and fraud risk assessment, has raised $35 million in Series A funding led by M13, with participation from Picus Capital, Torch Capital, Afore Capital, and Matt Thompson of Socure1

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. The financing brings the company's total funding to approximately $40 million since its February 2023 inception, as it shifts focus toward building what it calls a trust layer for AI agents operating in high-stakes workflows2

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Co-founder and CEO Jonathan Awad revealed that Baselayer reached eight figures in revenue in less than two years, though specific figures were not disclosed1

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. The company now serves more than 2,000 financial institutions—representing over 20% of such institutions in the U.S.—alongside Fortune 500 companies, with approximately 50 employees across San Francisco and New York offices1

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Launching Agentic Identity Suite to Address Know Your Agent Challenges

Alongside the funding announcement, Baselayer introduced its Agentic Identity Suite, extending its identity network from businesses to the AI agents transacting on their behalf1

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. This new system addresses a critical gap in the agentic economy: determining whether an AI agent is actually authorized to act on behalf of a particular person or business during automated transactions.

The challenge stems from the ephemeral nature of agentic AI systems. "Agents spin up and they spin down," Awad explained. "How can you trust this random one-task agent?"1

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Unlike traditional business entities that leave digital footprints, AI agents may be created for a single task—such as booking a restaurant reservation—and disappear immediately afterward, leaving little history for financial institutions or merchants to evaluate.

Baselayer's solution, dubbed "Know Your Agent" or KYA, aims to determine not only who deployed an agent but also who that agent represents and whether it has permission to carry out specific tasks1

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. The system provides authorized agents with credentials they can present when attempting purchases or business interactions, allowing merchants, financial institutions, and online platforms to verify legitimacy before allowing transactions to proceed.

Building Infrastructure Through Model Context Protocol and Strategic Partnerships

Baselayer has developed its Model Context Protocol (MCP), which gives AI agents direct access to the company's business identity and risk intelligence2

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. The platform aggregates business identity, credit, fraud data, ownership information, digital presence, and compliance risk signals that agentic AI systems can use to make informed decisions while reducing risks associated with incomplete or unreliable data.

The startup is collaborating with agent developers, payment processors, merchants, and fraud-detection providers to issue and recognize its credentials, including partnerships with FIS, Prove, and Socure1

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. Awad warns that without such verification systems, "agents will just get blocked everywhere," limiting the potential of autonomous AI systems in enterprise workflows1

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Addressing AI-Powered Fraud Prevention in the Agentic Economy

Baselayer's expansion comes as AI agents enter workflows across compliance, procurement, finance, risk management, and sales—areas where businesses need controls around reliability and accountability2

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. Since its founding, the company claims to have helped customers prevent more than $1 billion in fraud losses through its automated platform1

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Ironically, the same technology enabling legitimate agents to perform tasks also helps fraudsters operate faster. Awad describes the current situation as "fraud on steroids," noting that AI agents can now automate identity fraud processes that previously required significant manual work1

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. Fraudsters can use agentic AI systems to continuously apply for bank or credit card accounts using stolen information, scaling attacks that once took considerable time and effort.

Baselayer positions itself as both an identity network and fraud consortium. Because its technology processes tens of millions of applications across thousands of financial institutions, it can recognize when the same person or business applies at multiple institutions and incorporate that activity into risk scoring1

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. This network effect becomes more valuable as additional institutions and reseller partners join, creating a comprehensive view of business behavior and agentic identity patterns across the financial ecosystem.