EU + UK KYB & company-data APIs compared (2026)

An honest buyer's guide to the main KYB and company-data APIs for European Union and UK coverage: Prometiam, Kyckr, Sumsub, Global Database, OpenCorporates, Creditsafe and ComplyAdvantage. Each provider is strong at different things — this guide states where each one wins and where it falls short, including Prometiam's own gaps.

Quick verdict

  • Prometiam — best for developers who need EU + UK registry data plus sanctions and US export-control screening behind one REST key, with transparent public pricing, a free tier and MCP-native access. Honest limits: PEP is beta and Spain-only (no relatives or close associates), no adverse-media, no financial statements, UK-only beneficial ownership (PSC), Ireland and Poland are company-level only.
  • Kyckr — best for real-time official-document retrieval across 300+ registries in 120+ countries and cross-border UBO tracing. Pay-per-call, no public price list, no sanctions screening in the core product.
  • Sumsub — best when you need full KYB plus KYC identity/document verification and built-in sanctions, PEP and adverse-media in one workflow. Mostly quote-based; a platform, not a raw data API.
  • Global Database — broad global company, firmographic and contact data with filed accounts and credit scores, plus sanctions and PEP screening (its site lists a relatives-and-associates tier, as read September 2026). Quote-based, credit-metered.
  • OpenCorporates — the largest open registry aggregator (200M+ companies) with strong provenance. No sanctions, limited beneficial ownership, bulk/API access is quote-based.
  • Creditsafe — best for company financials, credit scores and risk ratings across many countries. Annual contracts, quote-based, no free tier.
  • ComplyAdvantage — best-in-class sanctions, PEP and adverse-media screening. Registry/entity data is thinner; quote-based, no public pricing.

Comparison table

ProviderEU+UK registriesBeneficial ownershipSanctions / screeningPublic pricingFree tierDeveloper experience
PrometiamES, FR, UK, IE, PL, NO (6)UK PSC onlyYes — 6 sources + US export-controlYes (€9.99–€99.99)Yes (1,000/mo, no card)REST + OpenAPI + MCP
KyckrMost EU + UK (120+ countries)Cross-border UBO tracingNo (in core product)No (pay-per-call)NoREST API, normalised JSON
SumsubGlobal via registriesUBO + KYC of ownersYes — sanctions/PEP/adverse-mediaPartial (per-verification)TrialAPI + SDKs + no-code flows
Global DatabaseBroad globalOwnership chains / UBOYes — sanctions + PEP tiersNo (quote)TrialREST API + CRM integrations
OpenCorporatesVery broad (open data)LimitedNoYes — published: £225/mo (500 calls) to £1,200/mo (5,000)Not for commercial useREST API, strong provenance
CreditsafeBroad + financialsUBO in many marketsAdd-on / limitedNo (annual, quote)NoREST API (Connect)
ComplyAdvantageThin registry dataLimitedYes — best-in-classNo (quote)NoREST API + webhooks

When Prometiam is the right choice

Choose Prometiam when your stack is EU + UK, you want to start building today without a sales call, and you need registry verification plus sanctions/export-control screening in one key. Choose a competitor when you need global-beyond-EU registry retrieval (Kyckr), full identity-document KYC in the same flow (Sumsub), company financials and credit scores (Creditsafe), or deep PEP/adverse-media (ComplyAdvantage).

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Comparison table

ProviderEU+UK registriesBeneficial ownershipSanctions / screeningPublic pricingFree tierDeveloper experience
PrometiamES, FR, UK, IE, PL, NO (6)UK PSC onlyYes — 6 sources + US export-controlYes (€9.99–€99.99)Yes (1,000/mo, no card)REST + OpenAPI + MCP
KyckrMost EU + UK (120+ countries)Cross-border UBO tracingNo (in core product)No (pay-per-call)NoREST API, normalised JSON
SumsubGlobal via registriesUBO + KYC of ownersYes — sanctions/PEP/adverse-mediaPartial (per-verification)TrialAPI + SDKs + no-code flows
Global DatabaseBroad globalOwnership chains / UBOYes — sanctions + PEP tiersNo (quote)TrialREST API + CRM integrations
OpenCorporatesVery broad (open data)LimitedNoYes — published: £225/mo (500 calls) to £1,200/mo (5,000)Not for commercial useREST API, strong provenance
CreditsafeBroad + financialsUBO in many marketsAdd-on / limitedNo (annual, quote)NoREST API (Connect)
ComplyAdvantageThin registry dataLimitedYes — best-in-classNo (quote)NoREST API + webhooks

At a glance

Provider EU+UK registries Beneficial ownership Sanctions / screening Public pricing Free tier Developer experience
Prometiam ES, FR, UK, IE, PL, NO (6) UK PSC only Yes — 6 sources + US export-control Yes — €9.99–€99.99 Yes — 1,000/mo, no card REST + OpenAPI + MCP
Kyckr Most EU + UK (120+ countries) Cross-border UBO tracing No (core product) No — pay-per-call No REST, normalised JSON
Sumsub Global via registries UBO + KYC of owners Yes — sanctions/PEP/adverse-media Partial (per-verification) Trial / sandbox API + SDKs + no-code
Global Database Broad global Ownership chains / UBO Yes — sanctions + PEP tiers No — quote Trial + extension REST + CRM integrations
OpenCorporates Very broad (open data) Limited None No — quote (API/bulk) Limited web lookups REST, strong provenance
Creditsafe Broad + financials UBO in many markets Add-on / limited No — annual, quote No REST API (Connect)
ComplyAdvantage Thin registry data Limited Yes — best-in-class No — quote No REST + webhooks

Frequently asked questions

What is the best KYB / company-data API for EU and UK coverage?
It depends on scope. For developers who want EU + UK registry data (Spain, France, UK, Ireland, Poland and Norway) plus sanctions and US export-control screening behind one REST key with transparent public pricing and a free tier, Prometiam is the most direct fit. For global-beyond-EU registry retrieval choose Kyckr; for KYB plus identity-document KYC in one flow choose Sumsub; for company financials and credit scores choose Creditsafe; for the deepest PEP and adverse-media screening choose ComplyAdvantage.
Which KYB APIs publish transparent pricing and offer a free tier?
Among the providers compared here, Prometiam is the one with fully public tiered pricing (Free 1,000 calls/month with no card, then €9.99, €29.99 and €99.99 tiers plus Enterprise). Sumsub publishes some per-verification pricing. Kyckr, Global Database, OpenCorporates, Creditsafe and ComplyAdvantage are generally quote-based, and most do not offer a self-serve free tier beyond a trial.
Which providers give real beneficial-ownership (UBO) data?
The UK PSC register is the most reliable public beneficial-ownership source in this set, and Prometiam exposes it directly (UK only). Kyckr traces UBOs across borders from official registry shareholder data, Sumsub identifies UBOs as part of KYB, and Creditsafe provides UBO in many markets. For Spain, France, Ireland and Poland, statutory UBO registers are access-restricted, so most providers — Prometiam included — do not offer verified UBO there.
What are Prometiam’s honest limitations versus these competitors?
Prometiam offers PEP screening only as a beta, Spain-only dataset with no relatives or close associates, so it does not on its own satisfy a FATF PEP obligation. It does not provide adverse-media, natural-person identity/document verification, or company financial statements. Beneficial ownership is UK PSC only, and Ireland and Poland are company-level (no directors/UBO). If you need full PEP or the others, pair Prometiam with a specialist — for example ComplyAdvantage for PEP/adverse-media, Sumsub for identity KYC, or Creditsafe for financials.
Do I need more than one KYB API?
Often, yes. A common EU + UK stack pairs a registry + sanctions data layer (such as Prometiam) with a natural-person identity-verification vendor (Sumsub, Veriff, Onfido) and, where required, a dedicated PEP/adverse-media screening provider (ComplyAdvantage, World-Check). No single vendor in this comparison covers registry data, financials, identity KYC and deep adverse-media equally well.
Which KYB API has the best developer experience?
For a code-first team, the differentiators are a public REST API, an OpenAPI spec, a self-serve key and, increasingly, an MCP server for AI agents. Prometiam ships all four (REST + OpenAPI + MCP-native) with a free key and no sales call. Kyckr and Sumsub have solid REST APIs and SDKs; OpenCorporates has strong data provenance; Creditsafe and ComplyAdvantage are API-capable but typically require a sales-led contract first.