Enhancing Compliance and Fraud Prevention at Wayfair

Wayfair’s platform connects thousands of suppliers to millions of customers, making compliance and fraud prevention a top priority. However, outdated workflows and manual processes left the platform vulnerable to fraudulent accounts and operational inefficiencies. To address these issues, I designed and implemented a scalable solution that integrated KYB (Know Your Business) and KYC (Know Your Customer) processes.

This effort didn’t just meet compliance standards—it ensured a seamless experience for legitimate suppliers, increased efficiency for internal teams, and significantly reduced fraud risks.

Tools
Figma
Miro
Jira
UserTesting.com

Deliverables
High Fidelity Mockups
High Fidelity Prototype
UX Research Findings

My Role
Product Designer Lead

Duration
6 MONTHS

Team
Experience Horizontals
Supplier Onboarding
Supplier Compliance
Supplier Diligence

KNOW YOUR BUSINESS (KYB)
IMPLEMENTATION

KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER (KYC)
IMPLEMENTATION

Results

A Safer, More Reliable Platform

launched KYB with milestones, significantly reducing fraud and improving marketplace integrity. Achieved a 20% reduction in illegitimate supplier applications and a 5% decrease in fraud instances within the first 90 days. The project also improved onboarding efficiency, reducing supplier drop-off rates and enhancing the overall supplier experience.

Challenge

1. Fraudulent Supplier Accounts

Manual verification processes were inconsistent, allowing fraudulent suppliers to slip through and harming platform trust.

2. Inefficient Workflows

The supplier onboarding process lacked automation, causing bottlenecks and delays for both suppliers and compliance teams.

3. Supplier Confusion

Suppliers struggled with unclear compliance requirements and complex verification steps, leading to frustration and an overburdened support team.

Wayfair needed a robust and user-friendly solution to address these gaps while meeting international compliance standards.

Stakeholder Collaboration

Partnered with compliance, fraud prevention, and operations teams to identify key inefficiencies and vulnerabilities.

Data Analysis

Studied flagged accounts and fraud patterns to design more accurate verification triggers.

Supplier Interviews

Conducted interviews with suppliers to understand pain points and gather input on improving transparency.

Both KYB and KYC processes were essential to ensure robust compliance. KYB verified business legitimacy, while KYC validated the identities of individuals representing those businesses.

Research and Discovery

Understanding the Root Causes

The Approach

I proposed a phased integration of KYB and KYC to streamline supplier verification.

Phase 1
KYB Integration (Know Your Business)

Focused on verifying the legitimacy of supplier businesses:

  • Dynamic Business Registration Forms:
    Introduced region-specific forms to gather accurate data while reducing input errors.

  • Automated Background Checks:
    Integrated third-party verification systems for business registration and tax compliance.

  • Real-Time Feedback:
    Provided instant feedback on form completion, reducing supplier confusion and delays.

Phase 2
KYC Integration (Know Your Customer)

Enhanced fraud prevention by verifying individual representatives of businesses:

  • Educational Content: Designed a landing page with clear instructions and FAQs about the KYC process to reduce drop-offs.

  • Mobile Verification via QR Code: Enabled suppliers to upload identification through a QR-code-triggered mobile experience.

  • Streamlined Interaction Design: Simplified steps by using a modal interface to centralize attention on ID verification tasks.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

Collaborated with engineering, legal, and third-party vendors to ensure the KYB and KYC systems complied with international standards.

Tested the new workflow with suppliers and internal teams to identify bottlenecks and usability issues. Iterative testing ensured the design met user needs without overcomplicating the experience.

Design Exploration

From broad to focused, I explored predefined verticals based on supplier types, leveraging new design system components to align seamlessly with supplier needs.

Predefined Verticals

Edit Capabilitites

Educate Supplier

Assisted Support

New Business & Supplier verification experience

We transformed the onboarding experience from a handholding process to a streamlined, self-serve platform.

  • Suppliers could now onboard independently with transparent progress tracking.

  • The process was simplified, cutting redundant steps and removing unnecessary dependencies.

This shift empowered suppliers while reducing the burden on Wayfair’s support team.