In this edition of Bright Founders Talk, we’re joined by Ravi Bijlani, the visionary Founder and CEO of KYXStart. With over two decades of experience in building platforms across payments and digital identity, Ravi shares a compelling perspective on the evolving landscape of trust in a digital world.

In a time when payments and the internet have accelerated rapidly, KYXStart emerges as a bold response to the outdated methods of verifying trust and identity. The platform aims to close the growing trust gap by offering real-time, AI-powered verification that keeps up with the speed of modern fraud. During our conversation, Ravi delves into how KYXStart is redefining identity verification through its unified API, capable of verifying billions of users and millions of businesses worldwide. He introduces a powerful new concept—KYP: Know Your Payer/Payee—that takes fraud detection beyond traditional boundaries.

As regulations tighten and fraudsters grow more sophisticated, KYXStart is leveraging AI not just to keep pace but to lead. This interview reveals Ravi’s deep conviction that digital identity is the rocket fuel of the economy—and KYXStart is building the engine that will drive it forward.

Fighting Fraud at the Speed of the Internet: How KYXStart is Redefining Digital Trust

Ravi Bijlani didn’t set out to build just another identity verification tool—he set out to fix what he calls the “trust gap.” After spending over two decades in the payments and identity space, he kept running into the same problem: while the internet and payments raced ahead, trust lagged behind. “We’re still using static checks to make real-time decisions,” Ravi said, shaking his head. And in today’s world—where a deepfake can mimic your face and fraudsters are practically running startups—those outdated methods just don’t cut it. That’s where KYXStart comes in.

Instead of offering scattered point solutions like the rest of the industry, Ravi and his team built a unified platform—one API to rule them all. Whether you’re verifying a user in Mumbai or a business in Berlin, KYXStart promises global coverage with just a few lines of code. It’s designed for financial institutions, ecommerce giants, and marketplaces that need to be sure not just who you are, but whose card you’re using. That’s where their newest concept comes in: KYP—Know Your Payer, Know Your Payee. It’s a fresh take that digs deeper than the usual KYC protocols, pushing identity verification into the moment of transaction.

But don’t be fooled—this isn’t just a tech play. Ravi’s passion is personal. He’s seen how fraud can erode customer trust, and he’s obsessed with staying ahead of the curve. With a global approach to regulations and homegrown AI agents monitoring compliance shifts in real-time, KYXStart is built to scale and adapt. The founding team’s background in high-volume transaction platforms gives them an edge—but Ravi believes their real fuel is something even more powerful: “Digital identity is the rocket fuel of the economy.” And if he’s right, KYXStart just might be the launchpad businesses have been waiting for.

How Trust Is Becoming the Real Product

When new clients knock on KYXStart’s door, they often think they know what they need: “Help me verify users, fast.” But according to Ravi, that’s just scratching the surface. What surprises most of them isn’t how many users they can verify—it’s the moment they realize they can also verify payment instruments, creating a whole new level of transactional trust. “That’s what brings repeat business and good customers,” Ravi explains. And he doesn’t just mean better conversion rates; he’s talking about protecting brand trust in a world where a fake Walmart account can make someone swear off a brand for life.

Ravi doesn’t mince words when it comes to the dangers of digital impersonation. He casually throws in real-world examples—like someone using his name and address to order car coolant through a fake Walmart Plus account—to show how personal the fraud game has become. And once that happens, “I’m done,” he says. That kind of erosion of trust is exactly what KYXStart is designed to prevent. It's not just about fraud detection anymore—it's about making sure people feel safe when interacting with your brand. That’s a business asset money can’t buy, but technology can protect.

Looking ahead, Ravi is fired up about what he calls the agentic commerce revolution. Picture this: You tell your phone, “Order milk,” and an AI agent takes care of it—finding your favorite store, using your preferred account, and getting it to your door. But behind the scenes, that agent is representing you—and the retailer’s agent needs to trust that it's really you. That’s where KYXStart’s next-gen identity infrastructure comes in. “AI doesn’t need more data,” Ravi says. “It needs better signals.” And in a future full of bots acting on your behalf, the company that builds the trust layer might just control the game.

Don’t Build Fast—Build for the Future: Why Ravi Ditched the MVP and Focused on Trust

Forget the MVP hustle—Ravi isn’t here for it. While many founders rush to market with half-baked products, KYXStart took a very different route: they spent the first nine months not selling a thing. “We were data-hungry,” Ravi says, grinning. “All we cared about was coverage and accuracy.” Instead of chasing early traction, the team obsessively mapped out how to verify users and payment instruments across the globe, one financial institution at a time. No flashy AI demos. No buzzword bingo. Just quiet, relentless groundwork. That foundation is why the platform is now built to scale—and ready for a future of millions of transactions from day one.

When it comes to regulation, Ravi’s take is refreshingly nuanced. While some see red tape, he sees structure. Every country has its own flavor—India leans on Aadhaar, Ukraine thrives on mobile IDs—and for Ravi, that’s not chaos, that’s opportunity. “Regulations give us the algorithm to solve a problem,” he explains. In a world flooded with data breaches and evolving compliance standards, KYXStart doesn’t just tolerate regulation—it embraces it. To him, these rules aren’t roadblocks; they’re the blueprints for building a truly global trust layer. One that can flex to fit each market without compromising security or user experience.

Looking ahead, Ravi’s vision for identity is bold: it should be instant, invisible, and global. In five years, he says, we won’t even think about verifying our identity—it’ll just happen in the background. What businesses will care about isn’t identity; it’s intent. Did this person really mean to buy that? Are they truly behind that transaction? That’s where KYXStart is headed, chasing not just who we are, but why we’re acting. “We’re not building for trends—we’re building where the puck is going,” Ravi says. And if KYXStart gets it right, trust won’t be a feature. It’ll be the future.

Trust Where the Money Goes: Ravi on Beating Scams, Staying Ahead, and Building What Matters

One of the hardest realities Ravi talks about isn’t theoretical—it’s painfully human. Scam calls that pressure people into moving money right now, fake emergencies, emotional manipulation. He’s seen it hit close to home. The problem, as he explains, is that most systems only check where the money is coming from, not where it’s going. That blind spot is exactly where scams thrive. KYXStart’s answer is KYP: knowing the payer and the destination. It’s a simple shift in thinking, but a powerful one—because stopping fraud isn’t just about identity, it’s about intent and outcomes. As Ravi puts it, “You need to know where the money is going, not just where it starts.”

When the conversation turns to fraudsters versus defenders, Ravi is refreshingly honest: it’s a constant race, and no one is permanently winning. AI started in the hands of the “good guys,” but fraudsters adapted fast—and now both sides are evolving at full speed. The real danger, he says, lies with institutions that refuse to evolve at all. Sticking to five-year-old playbooks in a world of deepfakes and voice cloning isn’t cautious—it’s risky. Trust is no longer a background process; it’s front-page news. And consumers are getting smarter by the day, more aware of how data moves, how scams work, and who deserves their confidence.

For Ravi, success isn’t measured in revenue charts or company size. It’s simpler—and harder—than that. Are you solving real problems? Is your team excited to show up every day? And are you building fast enough to stay ahead of bad actors without burning people out? His advice to founders reflects that mindset: you don’t need all the answers. Your job is clarity. Clarity of mission, clarity of direction, clarity that lets teams move fast together. “Speed comes from alignment, not pressure,” he says—and that belief runs through everything he’s building. In the end, trust isn’t just KYXStart’s product. It’s the principle behind how Ravi measures progress, leadership, and impact.