> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://hub.bsvblockchain.org/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://hub.bsvblockchain.org/higher-learning/bsv-academy/how-spv-supports-legal-compliance-in-blockchain-technology/legal-compliance-through-verifiable-proof/identity-accountability-and-selective-disclosure.md).

# Identity, Accountability, and Selective Disclosure

While Bitcoin's original design emphasized **pseudonymity** through address-based transactions, SPV mechanisms can integrate with **identity frameworks** to support **Know Your Customer (KYC)** and **Anti-Money Laundering (AML)** compliance. The architectural innovation in BSV's approach is the **separation of concerns**: on-chain data remains pseudonymous through single-use derived public keys, but SPV proofs can be combined with off-chain identity verification.

This architecture allows **regulated entities** to maintain compliant identity records while leveraging blockchain's transparency for transaction verification. A payment processor, for example, can maintain a database mapping customer identities (verified through KYC processes) to the derived public keys used in transactions. The blockchain itself contains no personally identifiable information (PII), satisfying privacy regulations, but the payment processor can prove to regulators which transactions belong to which customers by demonstrating control of the relevant private keys.


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