E-Signature

An e-signature, short for electronic signature, is any electronic sound, symbol or process that a person attaches to or associates with a document or record to show that they intend to sign it. It can be as simple as typing a name, ticking a box or clicking "I agree", or as sophisticated as a cryptographically secured signature tied to a verified identity. E-signatures are used every day to open bank accounts, sign loan agreements, approve payments and close commercial contracts.

In most legal systems an e-signature is the legal counterpart of a handwritten signature, while a digital signature is a specific technical method, based on public-key cryptography, that can be used to create a highly secure e-signature. The two terms are often confused. Laws in the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and many other countries give electronic signatures legal effect, subject to certain exceptions and to rules about evidence.

A signature on paper does two things: it shows who agreed, and it shows that they meant to agree. An e-signature does the same job on a screen. Typing a name at the bottom of an online form, drawing a signature with a finger on a tablet or pressing a confirm button in a banking app can all count, as long as the person intended to sign and the record of what they signed is kept.

Some e-signatures are much stronger than others. A quick click is easy but can be hard to prove later. A signature backed by a verified identity and a secure digital certificate is harder to fake and easier to defend if someone later claims they never signed.

• United States. The Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN), passed in 2000, and the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA), adopted by most states, provide that a signature or contract cannot be denied legal effect solely because it is electronic. ESIGN also sets consumer-consent rules for delivering legally required disclosures electronically.
• European Union. The eIDAS Regulation of 2014 defines three levels: simple electronic signatures, advanced electronic signatures, which are uniquely linked to and capable of identifying the signer, and qualified electronic signatures, which use a qualified certificate and a secure signature device and have the same legal effect as a handwritten signature across the EU. A 2024 revision added the European Digital Identity Wallet.
• United Kingdom. English law has long accepted electronic signatures, supported by the Electronic Communications Act 2000, and the Electronic Trade Documents Act 2023 extended legal recognition to electronic versions of trade documents such as bills of lading.

Most laws keep exceptions, which commonly include wills, some family-law and property documents and certain court papers, and these vary by jurisdiction.

Basic e-signatures rely on the platform recording who signed, when and from where, usually through an audit trail that logs email addresses, IP addresses and timestamps. Stronger forms add authentication steps, such as one-time codes or biometric authentication, and use cryptography. In a cryptographic signature, the signer's private key creates a value tied to a hash of the document, so any later change to the document is detectable; schemes such as the Digital Signature Algorithm are used for this. Qualified signatures add a certificate issued by an accredited trust service provider after identity verification.

Banks and fintechs use e-signatures to onboard customers remotely, alongside know-your-customer checks, and to execute account agreements, loan documents, mortgages where permitted, card terms and payment mandates such as direct-debit authorizations. In trade finance, electronic signatures support the shift away from paper letters of credit and shipping documents. In crypto, every blockchain transaction is authorized by a cryptographic signature, which is technically a digital signature, though whether it counts as a legal signature on an agreement depends on context and law.

Electronic signing platforms have grown into a large software market, and many lenders now complete the whole process, from application to signature, inside a mobile app. For high-value or regulated documents, some institutions combine e-signatures with video identification or notarization carried out remotely, where local law allows it. Adoption accelerated sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when in-person signing became difficult and several governments temporarily relaxed rules on witnessing documents.

The weakest e-signatures can be hard to attribute: a defendant may argue that someone else used their email account or device. Courts then look at the audit trail and authentication used. Fraudsters target e-signature workflows with phishing emails that imitate signing requests, and with account takeover to sign in a victim's name. Cross-border deals can raise questions about which law applies and whether one country recognizes another's qualified certificates. Firms are advised to match the strength of the signature to the value and risk of the transaction and to keep secure, tamper-evident records of the signing process.