Jet Maintenance Solutions (JET MS), a provider of aircraft MRO solutions for business and regional aviation located in Vilnius, Lithuania, has adopted Know Your Customer (KYC), a collection of guidelines for the verification of client identity and suitability, and risk assessment in business relationships. While KYC has primarily been imposed only on financial institutions, non-financial industries are also adopting its practice. The main goal of the KYC is to prevent businesses from being used for money laundering.

In any industry, transparency between a provider and a client is a sign of a strong and mutually beneficial partnership. The process of identifying a customer's identity allows MROs to prevent fraudulent companies or individuals from exploiting businesses for malicious purposes. By examining information provided, MROs can decide whether a customer is allowed to have business relations with them and assess risks to avoid unnecessary losses.

The KYC practice also helps to ensure that collaboration between both parties will not have negative effects on reputation, taxation or legal matters. Most MROs ensure a smoother and healthier customer experience when the company has information about legitimate business practices.

“Some of our clients are just scared of the procedure; it is unknown to them, and so they have no indication on what to expect,” explains JET MS CEO Vytis Zalimas. “We always educate individuals or companies that are not familiar with the system. Some clients have adopted Know Your Customer procedures into their business and the results have been positive. The use of this principle has benefited us numerous times when from a first look a client seems reputable, but after going through KYC identification it appears a customer bears a high risk of reputational damage to us. From our experience there has never been a case where a truly transparent and legitimate business would need to worry about their background check.”

He continues: “It is no secret we have lost several big contracts due to additional requirements of identification. In my eyes, several smaller contracts with reputable companies provide us with more value. With the certainty that we will not experience any reputational damages we win more than we would by choosing a secretive customer. KYC has provided us with an option to identify and work with only transparent and reputable clients. Jet MS is well known across the globe and has a strong reputation from numerous achievements and collaborations with high-profile companies, thus our customers and reputation are top priorities in any partnership.”