The Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF) announced that Finema, a Bangkok-based digital identity provider, has been designated as the first Southeast Asia-based Qualified verifiable Legal Entity Identifier (vLEI) Issuer, expanding the vLEI issuance network in the region. Finema’s integration into the vLEI ecosystem, described as a digitized, ISO-standardized framework, is intended to support secure and automated verification of organizations and their representatives. GLEIF highlighted that the offering can help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) securely present financial credentials to counterparties, facilitating access to cross-border trade and international finance.