Online identity verification service miiCard announced the completion of a second seed funding round, securing $2.5 million angel and venture capital from a mix of investment groups including New Wave Ventures, IQ Capital and Par Equity, to accelerate growth and adoption of its 'digital passport' amongst businesses and consumers.

The substantial investment supports miiCard's expansion into the US and will enable rapid growth of the business across a range of markets, including financial services, ecommerce, social networking and dating, where trust online is now critical. Such a high level of seed funding for an early stage company reflects miiCard's strong initial market traction as well as the global acceleration of the online identity verification sector and the realisation of the need to prove real identities on the web.

miiCard (My Internet Identity) is the world's first independent, commercial identity verification service allowing the individual to control their digital identity and prove "I am who I say I am" online and in real-time, to Anti-Money Laundering standards, eliminating the need for a physical ID check.

miiCard is responding to a growing demand worldwide for a means to prove identity purely online as both the risk and value of transactions on the web escalate. Both the US and UK governments have launched initiatives to tackle the issue, with the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace (NSTIC) in the United States and the UK Identity Assurance Programme, with the aim of validating consumers' true identities - not just checking information about them.

James Varga, miiCard CEO, comments: "Now, more than ever, we are seeing a huge amount of activity in the marketplace around online identity and trust. With miiCard we can create a level of trust that currently does not exist online, and dramatically change the way we transact on the Internet.

"We're delighted to have New Wave Ventures on board to help drive our business forward. Along with our existing investors and board members, we have a fantastic team and a unique opportunity to change the way we interact online."

This is the first time New Wave Ventures have invested in miiCard and its backing builds on an earlier funding round during which miiCard raised over $.75 million from investors including IQ Capital and Par Equity who have reinvested during this current round.

Tim Bullock, co-founder of New Wave Ventures comments: "As the Internet plays a growing role in the way we interact with each other, especially when executing financial transactions, it becomes increasingly important to be able to prove who we are, and quickly and reliably establish who we are dealing with.

"The miiCard team have developed a unique and global solution to this problem, which will facilitate commercial transactions and remove uncertainty from more personal interactions, and we look forward to working with them to develop the business."

Ed Stacey of IQ Capital Partners, comments: "miiCard has clearly demonstrated an ability to develop rapidly. We're proud to be continuing to support the company as it positions itself as the market leader in online identity."

Paul Atkinson of Par Equity, states that: "miiCard has clearly made huge progress over the last few months and we are delighted to be involved as investors. We are looking forward to miiCard being adopted as an industry standard for online identity validation."

Founded in September 2011, miiCard already supports seven countries and is quickly expanding to meet demand from businesses wanting to improve customer satisfaction, increase conversions and reduce operational costs by enabling consumers to meet identity verification requirements purely online and in real-time. miiCard is looking to grow the existing team, with plans to treble staff in the coming months.