The European Busienss Wallet (EUBW) and Legal Person Identity: Redefining Trust in the EU’s Digital Economy

1. Executive Summary

   
   

Trust across jurisdictions remains a global challenge. Current frameworks lack consistency and interoperability, making it difficult to establish trust in international supply chains and industrial ecosystems.

The European Commission’s Competitiveness Compass, introduced by Ursula von der Leyen in January 2025, outlines key actions to strengthen Europe’s economic and technological leadership. A major initiative within this framework is the European Business Wallet (EUBW), envisioned as the cornerstone of seamless digital business interactions across the EU. Building upon eIDAS 2.0 (EU №910/2014), the EUBW aims to simplify regulatory compliance and enhance digital trust for businesses.

“With the European Business Wallet, we will simplify business-to-business and business-to-government exchanges for businesses. In addition to facilitating secure data exchange, the business wallet would unlock new business opportunities for trust service providers.” Source: EU Commission Work Programme 2025.

Hence, the European Business Wallet (EUBW) provides a breakthrough solution for industrial use cases and supply chains within the European Union (EU). With its unified and secure infrastructure, the EUBW (also known as “EUDI Wallet for Organizations”) solves the trust problem for the EU bloc, enabling seamless and compliant interactions among organizations, governments, and individuals.

While many supply chains operate globally and may not immediately adopt the European Business Wallet technology and trust models, these systems could integrate with other jurisdictional trust infrastructures, creating a multi-polar digital economy. The EUBW ensures that the EU has a consistent and reliable foundation for trust, allowing it to plug into this broader global digital landscape while maintaining regulatory and operational integrity.

It is also important to note that many downstream supply chains and regulatory frameworks, particularly those governed by EU-specific directives, operate exclusively within EU jurisdictions. For these cases, the legal person identity capabilities of the European Business Wallet are a game-changer. They enable the secure next-level digitization of processes like perpetual master data management, regulatory compliance, and sustainability reporting, fostering innovation and efficiency within the EU.

Note: As the terminology in regulatory definitions is evolving and the term European Business Wallet (EUBW) is relatively new, we will use the term EUDI Wallet for Organizations instead.

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TL;DR — Key Highlights

a) Why the EUDI Wallet for Organizations Is Important

• Provides a unified framework for identity and trust, replacing siloed, inconsistent systems.

• Solves trust challenges within EU jurisdictions, enabling secure, compliant data exchange.

• Establishes a foundational infrastructure that plugs the EU into a multi-polar digital economy.

b) Vertical and Horizontal Ecosystems

• Horizontal ecosystems provide foundational trust layers (e.g., identity and standards) that span industries.

• Vertical ecosystems focus on domain-specific use cases like supply chain traceability, financial compliance, and energy data sharing.

• EUDI Wallets bridge these ecosystems, enabling interoperability and trust across diverse domains.

c) Transient Trust

• EUDI Wallets solve the problem of transient trust by enabling real-time, verifiable trust relationships between previously unknown parties.

• They ensure secure data sharing and regulatory compliance without delays, fostering innovation and efficiency.

d) Perpetual Master Data Management (MDM)

• EUDI Wallets support Perpetual MDM, automating the continuous synchronization and validation of enterprise data.

• This eliminates manual updates, ensures data accuracy, and enables real-time decision-making.

• Use cases include financial KYC/KYS, supply chain transparency, and energy grid balancing.

e) Use Cases Across Key Sectors

• Financial Services: Automated onboarding with perpetual KYC/KYS, enabling secure and compliant data sharing.

• Energy: Data exchange for smart meters, grid balancing, and flexibility aggregation while protecting critical infrastructure.

• Supply Chains: Issuing and verifying Digital Product Passports (DPPs) for transparency, sustainability, and compliance.

• Industry 4.0: Establishing authorization chains from business registries to machines, enabling seamless DPP issuance and automated workflows.

• AI and Cyber-Physical Systems: Introducing AI Service Passports to ensure the ethical and compliant use of AI, including tracking provenance, training data, and validation processes.

f) Spherity’s EUDI Wallet Capabilities and Experiences

• Spherity has developed an advanced EUDI Wallet tailored for enterprises, enabling identity management and compliance across multiple domains.

• Spherity collaborates with business registries like Bundesanzeiger Verlag in Germany and compliance credential issuers like Legisym in the U.S. to provide primary-source validated credentials. These credentials enable secure, verifiable compliance and cyber-security use cases across industries.

• The wallet integrates seamlessly into vertical ecosystems, offering solutions for perpetual master data management, supply chains, energy, Industry 4.0, and AI.

• Proven expertise in decentralized identity and contributions to international standards make Spherity a trusted partner for EUDI Wallet implementation.

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The EUDI Wallet provides a foundational trust infrastructure for Europe, solving challenges of identity, compliance, and interoperability within the EU. It bridges vertical and horizontal ecosystems, supports transient trust, and drives next-level digitization in critical industries. Moreover, it positions the EU to actively participate in a multi-polar digital economy, with secure and scalable solutions that can integrate with global trust frameworks.

Whether you are an enterprise seeking to streamline compliance, a regulator aiming to unify standards, or a technology provider exploring wallet integration, the time to act is now. Partner with Spherity to lead your industry into a future of trusted, connected, and data-driven ecosystems. Together, we can build a secure digital future that fosters innovation, transparency, and compliance.

2. Introduction

EUDI Wallets are the backbone of the EU’s digital identity framework. Under eIDAS 2.0, they serve as secure tools to store and manage digital credentials. Initially designed for natural persons, EUDI Wallets enable individuals to authenticate their identities, sign documents, and access services across borders. This technology supports trust, interoperability, and seamless interactions in the digital ecosystem.

The focus is now expanding from individuals to enterprises. Businesses need trusted tools to manage their digital identities, comply with regulations, and exchange data securely. Enterprise use cases — spanning financial services, energy, supply chains, and Industry 4.0 — present a significant opportunity for growth and innovation. The shift acknowledges that legal persons play a pivotal role in modern economies, requiring robust identity and trust frameworks.

Spherity is at the forefront of this evolution. With deep expertise in decentralized identity, we understand and shape key digital identity trends while designing solutions tailored for enterprises.

Our partnership with Bundesanzeiger Verlag, a trusted source for German corporate registry data, strengthens the reliability of enterprise credentials. Through this collaboration, we provide businesses with verified data directly from primary sources, enabling efficient Know Your Business Partner (KYBP) processes and seamless compliance.

From contributing to international standards to integrating with government registries, Spherity ensures that EUDI Wallets address the unique needs of businesses in regulated industries. Our work bridges public and private sectors, creating scalable and trusted identity solutions for the future.

For more on eIDAS and EUDI Wallets, visit the EU Digital Identity Initiative and explore Spherity’s role here.

3. State of the Play

The EUDI Wallet initiative began with a focus on citizens:Initially, the primary goal was to provide individuals with secure, interoperable tools to manage personal identification. Citizen wallets under eIDAS 2.0 allow users to authenticate their identities, access public and private services, and digitally sign documents across EU member states. These wallets laid the groundwork for the digital identity infrastructure, emphasizing trust and seamless usability for natural persons.

The focus is now shifting to supply chain and industrial use cases:Legal persons, such as companies and organizations, face increasing demands for trusted identity verification and secure data exchange. The transition to enterprise wallets addresses critical needs in regulated industries, enabling compliance, process automation, and cross-border data sharing. Business opportunities abound in sectors like finance, energy, supply chains, and Industry 4.0. These industrial use cases promise not only to enhance operational efficiency but also to unlock new business models by fostering trust and collaboration.

However, there are gaps in current standards and frameworks:The Architectural Reference Framework (ARF) under eIDAS 2.0 has yet to define clear requirements for enterprise wallets. While individual wallets are well-documented, enterprise-specific functionalities like organizational hierarchies, group-level credentials, and multi-layered authorizations remain underexplored. This lack of clarity poses challenges for businesses looking to adopt and integrate EUDI Wallet solutions.

Work on protocol standards is underway:Organizations such as CEN and CENELEC are addressing these gaps by developing standards for enterprise wallets. Their focus includes creating interoperability protocols and aligning with international standards to ensure seamless integration across ecosystems. This work is critical to scaling the adoption of EUDI Wallets for enterprises, ensuring that they meet the needs of diverse industries while maintaining compliance with EU regulations.

The evolving landscape reflects a strategic shift. By expanding beyond citizen-focused solutions, the EUDI Wallet initiative is poised to become a cornerstone for digital trust in industrial applications, paving the way for a more connected and secure digital economy.

4. Key Differences: Natural Person vs Legal Person Wallets

EUDI Wallets for natural persons and legal entities serve distinct purposes and target different user groups.

Purpose and Target Audience

• Natural Person Wallets (Citizen Wallets): These wallets are designed for individuals. They allow citizens to manage their personal identity credentials, access public and private sector services, and securely share personal documents like diplomas, driver’s licenses, or ID cards.

• Legal Person Wallets (Organizational Wallets): These wallets cater to legal entities, such as companies and organizations. They manage enterprise-specific credentials like business licenses, compliance certificates, powers of attorney, and contracts. Organizational Wallets must also support user management systems that enable multiple members within an organization to receive, store, and present these credentials as needed.

Type of Credentials

• Citizen Wallets: Primarily store personal credentials such as IDs, academic certificates, or healthcare data. These are used in interactions between individuals and service providers.

• Organizational Wallets: Manage business-related credentials essential for an organization’s legal and operational functions. Examples include compliance certificates, regulatory approvals, and verifiable credentials for supply chain management, such as Digital Product Passports. Organizational Wallets must also allow individuals to demonstrate specific permissions within the organization, such as signatory rights.

Delegation of Rights

• Citizen Wallets: Identity management is typically in the hands of the individual user. Delegation of rights is rare, though cases like guardians managing credentials for minors exist.

• Organizational Wallets: Delegation of rights is essential. Organizational Wallets allow designated members to act on behalf of the organization. For instance, an employee with signatory authority can sign contracts or documents on behalf of the company. These delegated rights are issued as cryptographically secured credentials, specifying the representatives and their scopes of authority.

  
  

User Interaction and Use Cases

• Citizen Wallets: Designed for individual use cases, such as accessing government services, signing documents, or managing personal health records. Interaction is typically manual, requiring user input.

• Organizational Wallets: Support complex and often automated use cases involving multiple parties. Examples include compliance management, KYC (Know Your Customer) and KYS (Know Your Supplier) processes, DPP management, and supply chain transactions.

Data Volume and Diversity

• Citizen Wallets: Manage a limited and standardized set of personal credentials, such as IDs, travel and health records.

• Organizational Wallets: Handle diverse, semanticallcy rich, and large volumes of business credentials. This includes compliance certifications, contract documents, DPPs, and operational data tailored to various business processes and industry requirements.

User and Permission Management

• Citizen Wallets: Feature straightforward user management, as they are tied to a single individual.

• Organizational Wallets: Require advanced role and permission management. They need to represent multiple organizational members with varying roles and authorizations. For instance, administrators can assign roles and adjust permissions within a central interface, ensuring security and flexibility.

Security and Scalability

• Citizen Wallets: Offer standard security measures like encryption, key management with a smart decice secure element, and PIN/biometric authentication.

• Organizational Wallets: Require robust cryptographic mechanisms to manage and delegate rights securely. These include multi-layered authorization processes and verifiable credentials to establish authority chains within the organization. Organizational Wallets must also integrate secure HMS modules and ensure 24/7 availability for seamless operations across global supply chains.

Interoperability and API Integration

• Citizen Wallets: Focus on user-friendly graphical interfaces (Human-UI) for manual interactions.

• Organizational Wallets: Prioritize API integrations to enable automation and machine-to-machine data exchanges. For instance, enterprise systems like ERP or SCM platforms can directly access wallet data for automated processes such as compliance checks or DPP management.

Insights from Spherity’s Research in the European Wallet Consortium (EWC)

Our EWC GitHub discussion highlights that Organizational Wallets must meet the following advanced requirements:

1. Authorization Chains: Manage complex hierarchies, such as issuing credentials from parent companies to subsidiaries or departments.

2. Credential Lifecycle Management: Support updates, renewals, and revocation of organizational credentials.

3. International Standards and Interoperability: Ensure cross-border usability by adhering to global standards and APIs, enabling seamless integration with diverse business ecosystems.

   
   

By addressing these distinctions, EUDI Wallets for legal persons can provide powerful tools for compliance, automation, and trust in business ecosystems.

Warning: Due to these distinctions, we do not recommend naively copying and pasting the Citizen EUDI Wallet stack for organizational use cases.

Instead, legal person wallets must be specifically designed and tailored to address the unique challenges and complexities of organizational processes, ensuring they meet the demands of compliance, scalability, and interoperability in business ecosystems.

Learn more about our work: European Wallet Consortium (EWC) Large Scale Pilot (LSP)