Web3Caff talks with Sign: How to build a universal verifiable system to reshape global identity authentication and value circulation

Author: Miki , Web3Caff Interview Team

In the wave of decentralization, trust remains the key link between the real world and blockchain. As a leading on-chain verification system, Sign uses the Sign Protocol as its core, making identity, agreement, credit and other information globally verifiable like blockchain transactions. In this exclusive interview, Sign co-founder Yan Xin deeply analyzes Sign's vision, technological breakthroughs and future plans, and discusses how to reshape the trust mechanism through blockchain and promote public services on the chain. Let us walk into the world of Sign and explore how blockchain can become a new cornerstone of global trust.

Q1: First of all, thank you very much for participating in this special interview with Web3Caff. Please briefly introduce yourself. Web3Caff is a deep vertical media platform dedicated to Web3 research. We welcome everyone to explore the development trend of Web3 industry and new economic dynamics with us from a global perspective. First of all, please briefly introduce yourself, Sign and your team?

Hello everyone, I am Yan Xin, co-founder of Sign. I grew up in China and I like bold ideas. I used to be an engineer, an investor, and now an entrepreneur.

In 2021, my two brothers and I founded Sign (then called EthSign). Four years after starting our business, we have created the global verification system Sign Protocol, which allows identity, agreement, credit and other information to be verified globally like blockchain transactions. In 2024, our revenue reached 15 million US dollars. We are the only company invested by Sequoia's three funds in the United States, India, and China, and it is also the first investment after Binance Labs changed its name to YZi Labs.

What we really want to do is to move the world's most important scenarios and public services to the blockchain. In other words, we believe that blockchain is the most powerful world ledger, which is real-time, accurate, and auditable. Our goal is to allow more information, qualifications, and identity data to be verified directly on the chain, and to complete verification efficiently and simply anytime, anywhere around the world.

Our next plan this year is to cooperate with more governments and international organizations to use blockchain, which was originally a platform to improve government efficiency, to carry out public services. We will announce some key collaborations in the middle of the year.

We have built a very diverse team, including Chinese, Americans, and Indians who graduated from Harvard, Cornell, Columbia, Berkeley, and USC. Some are obsessed with code, some are passionate about products - but most importantly, we all believe in the future of blockchain, and we believe it has the opportunity to reshape the underlying logic of global trust and build a truly supranational infrastructure era.

Q2: The Sign project proposes the vision of “Bringing trust to trustless networks”. How do you understand the “trust” in “trustless networks”? How does Sign redefine the role of trust in the blockchain ecosystem?

The blockchain itself is a trustless network, where everything is guaranteed by code and consensus, and in theory, there is no need to trust anyone. However, this is not the case in real life, where our daily decisions are based on trust: when we take a taxi, we trust the driver; when we sign a contract, we trust the other party’s identity; even when we browse social media, we are also judging whether the information source is reliable.

If blockchain is to carry more complex real-world applications, we need to introduce the real-world trust mechanism into the chain. We have deployed smart contracts on multiple blockchains and designed a unified format for these contracts so that all institutions, individuals, companies, and even national organizations can verify them through the chain system.

Q3: Let’s discuss Sign Protocol. Sign Protocol is defined as an “on-chain proof protocol”. Can you use a non-technical metaphor to explain its core value? What does it mean to ordinary users?

We can think of Sign Protocol as an "on-chain notary". In real life, when we need to prove the authenticity of a piece of information, we often rely on notary agencies, banks or governments to authenticate it. In the blockchain world, Sign Protocol has similar responsibilities. It provides a full-chain proof mechanism to ensure that every piece of information and every transaction on the chain is endorsed by a certified identity, guaranteeing its authenticity and validity.

For ordinary users, the core value of Sign Protocol is that it allows users' identities and information to be verified transparently and securely through blockchain technology; the identity on the chain is not just a wallet address, it represents a "person" with complete social credit and background. This identity has a higher credibility, can provide more convenience for users to participate in the Web3 world, and establish a higher degree of trust in various decentralized applications.

Q4: Sign Protocol attempts to make all information verifiable. Do you think "verification" will become a rigid demand in the future digital society? Are there scenarios where verification is not required? Web3 emphasizes decentralization, but the trust mechanism in the real world often relies on centralized institutions. Does Sign Protocol need to be integrated with the trust system in the real world (such as government, banks, and legal systems) to some extent?

Yes, there are many scenarios in life that need verification but are not done well. We can improve efficiency. For example, when Chinese apply for a US visa, they need to go to the bank to get a deposit certificate, fill out a form and submit their identity certificate, marriage certificate, etc., which is very cumbersome, and paper documents also have forgery loopholes. These "proof + verification" processes that take weeks to complete can actually be achieved in a few minutes through technology; for example, the KYC of the trading platform requires users to hold up their passports and take photos. This actually cannot prove the authenticity of the passport, but there is no better and more efficient way.

Of course, we need to cooperate and be compatible with the existing system. Blockchain is not an isolated island, but a powerful system. Without cooperation, there will be no application.

Q 5 : Does Sign Protocol have a unique cryptographic design for privacy protection? Does it use zero-knowledge proof (zk-SNARK, zk-STARK) or fully homomorphic encryption (FHE) to allow the verifier to complete signature verification without exposing sensitive data? Compared with traditional electronic signatures or identity authentication methods, how does Sign Protocol achieve "verifiable contract signing" without revealing the user's identity? Does it support selective disclosure or revocable anonymous credentials?

We use zk extensively, but FHE has not started yet, and the scenarios we are working on do not require these overly complex systems. Verification is sufficient, no comparison is required, and there is no need to put sensitive information on the chain (of course, it cannot be done because it does not comply with GDPR).

Q 6 : Regarding the EthSign product, compared with traditional electronic signature platforms such as DocuSign and Adobe Sign, what is the core breakthrough of EthSign? Is the simple "decentralization" enough to attract users? Does EthSign cooperate with specific judicial institutions or governments to promote the legal recognition of on-chain signatures? Are you considering cooperating with international contract standards organizations to make EthSign's smart contract signatures more legally applicable?

EthSign is an application scenario of Sign Protocol in electronic protocols. EthSigned files can be verified for free worldwide. Decentralization has never been a selling point. The selling point is that there is no need for subscription, no spam, and files are always encrypted and stored.

Our electronic signatures are based on the US Electronic Signature Act, which is recognized by most international organizations.

Q 7 : Can you briefly introduce the SignPass product?

SignPass is a new identity verification system that we started supporting last year in Sierra Leone and an emirate in the UAE.

Q8 : Governments have different regulatory requirements for identity management. The EU is implementing GDPR, and other countries may have stricter localized compliance requirements. SignPass's long-term vision is global adoption. How do you ensure policy compatibility across different countries and regions in this process? Will SignPass provide governments with customized identity management solutions to meet different legal frameworks?

The essence of identity management is the transmission of trust, and the establishment of trust is inseparable from the support of compliance. This is an issue that SignPass attaches great importance to.

Looking around the world, from GDPR (EU) to CCPA (US) to PIPL (China), each country and region has different legal details for the collection, storage, use, and cross-border transmission of personal identity data. This also means that the global identity infrastructure must have the ability to provide "compliance as a service."

SignPass's global compliance strategy is a dual-track approach of technical compliance and policy compliance:

• Technical compliance: SignPass has introduced the concept of Privacy by Design since its inception, using privacy-enhancing technologies such as zero-knowledge proof to ensure that user sensitive information is disclosed to the minimum, which naturally complies with the data minimization principles of various countries;

• Policy compliance: SignPass's authentication process, data storage, KYC/AML rules, and data sharing mechanism can all be modularly configured according to the regulatory frameworks of different countries and regions. Each country can have its own "local compliance plug-in" that is plug-and-play.

In addition, SignPass is also very willing to cooperate with governments, regulators and industry alliances to provide them with "customized government version of SignPass". The goal of SignPass is not to replace the existing national identity system, but to become a "bridge of trust" between the government and the Web3 world, helping the government to achieve:

• Comply with the new Web3 ecosystem;

• Seamless connection between traditional identity system and on-chain identity.

The ultimate goal of SignPass is to create a new digital identity paradigm that is the most compliant and cutting-edge in Web3, so that global identity management can truly achieve trust without borders and identity transferability.

Q 9 : Finally, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Sign for participating in this interview. Today’s discussion is of great significance. It has enabled us to have a deeper understanding of Sign and provided valuable insights for friends who are interested in Blockchain innovation projects. What is Sign’s roadmap in the next 3 to 5 years? What will be its main development direction?

This year, our direction is to explore "onchain gov efficiency". We will promote blockchain applications at the international level and move public services to public infrastructure (blockchain)

In the future, we will release a Sign App, similar to Alipay, including identity authentication, wallet management, and various applications.

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