The digital signature market is projected to grow from USD 2.8 billion in 2020 to USD 14.1 billion by 2026, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 31.0% during the forecast period: Based on a report published by Markets and Markets in September 2020.
Electronic signature adoption has accelerated in the context of remote working and digital transformation, with business process requirements driving solution selection. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected every segment of society including individuals and businesses.
The internet ecosystem has been playing a pivotal role all over the globe. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the dependency on online businesses has increased significantly. Advancement in technology has changed how everything is done including business.
Businesses within the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are increasingly using electronic methods to execute agreements. In fact, the UAE government has a strategy to go completely paperless by 2021.
Modern entrepreneurs have no choice but to catch up with the latest technology to remain relevant. Gone are the days when obtaining signatures from third parties or multiple signers was a complicated process. For starters, one had to printout documents, scan them send them via post or email and hope the recipient gets them on time, signs the documents then send them back.
Secondly, the process came with so many frustrations including missing signatures, late deliveries of crucial documents, misplaced or tattered documents not forgetting the time consuming manual process of printing, scanning and sending documents repeatedly. Interestingly, tech-savvy entrepreneurs are opting for digital signatures as a way of speeding up business transactions.
What is Digital Signature?

A digital signature is a specific type of electronic signature (e-signature) that relies on public-key cryptography to support identity authentication and provide data and transaction integrity. It is used as a means to reach a goal of providing irrefutable evidence that a specific digital object originated from a specific individual and has not been altered.
The authentication mechanism supports the business need of capturing the signer’s intent to sign. Digital signatures are used to support several security functions. However, the focus of this technology profile is on digital signatures used to protect the integrity and authenticity of documents, such as forms, agreements or contracts, and to demonstrate intent to sign.
In the UAE, an Electronic Authentication Certificate issued by an accredited Certification Service Provider may be used to fulfill the requirements of a Secure Electronic Signature if it verifies:
- The identity of the certification services provider.
- That the person whose identity is determined in the electronic authentication certificate had control at the time (of signing) of the Electronic Signature creation tool stated in such certificate.
- That the signature creation tool was valid on or before the date of issue of the electronic authentication certificate.
- Whether or not there are any limitations to the purpose or value for which the signature creation tool or the electronic authentication certificate may be used.
- Whether or not there are any limitations to the scope or extent of liability accepted by the certification services provider to any third party.
In the UAE, a Certification Service Provider is defined as an accredited or authorized person or organization that provides services in connection or relation to Electronic Signatures. Authorized Certification Service Providers are listed at Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA).
Why Should Your Business Embrace Digital Signature?

If your company is dealing with a large number of physical documents on a daily basis, you should consider adopting digital signatures. They will not just pave the way to a paperless future, they will also make your workflow more efficient and increase productivity, saving you time and money.
Here are some important reasons why having a digital signature is a good idea for your business:
- Fast Turnaround
Employees at companies using traditional signatures have to do many steps to sign and return a document received via email. Using this technique any type of documents and contracts can get signed with a click of a button. As a result, you save time because these codes allow you to replace the approval process on paper with a fully digital system which is faster and cheaper. Thanks to digital signatures, documents can get signed off almost instantly, from anywhere using a tablet, phone or computer.
- Cost Savings
The implementation of digitalization has a cost, but, in the long run, you will end up saving money. With a digital signature, sending paper documents is unnecessary. Therefore, printing and delivery/shipping costs will go down.
There will be also savings in other indirect costs such as filing, rekeying data, archiving, or tracking and in the expenses related to the processing of confidential files. The use of digital signatures will also help to cut down on environmental waste as a consequence of the drastic reduction of the paper your organization will use.
- Workflow Efficiency
With lesser delays, these signatures ensure better efficiency in workflow. Managing and tracking documents is easier and faster. Processes that use to take months from the time a document is requested until it is received can be done in considerable less time. They also make it easier to organize information and documents, because there aren’t any physical papers to sift through. Searching through digital documents is easier and faster than searching through paper documents stored in file cabinets or boxes.
Another benefit is that you will be better able to track documents. Some software even sends signers a reminder email if a document has not been signed yet.
- Strengthen Security
Digital signatures reduce the risk of duplication or alteration of the document itself and ensure that signatures are verified and legitimate because each of them is protected with a tamper-evident seal, which alerts you if any part of the document has been changed after signing. Signers are also provided with PINs, password and codes that can authenticate and verify their identity and approve their signatures.
Digital encryption and audit trails keep your signature secure, protecting your organization against fraud and keeping your information safe.
- Increase Storage Space
Due to the fact that digital files are stored in virtual servers connected to the IT network or in the cloud, you don’t need to keep your office storage cabinets filled with paper files and your office can have more available space for other things. Physical documents occupy a lot of space and increases the usage of paper, which is not recommended due to its environmental impact.
- Legally Defensible
With hackers on the loose, it is important to ensure that the authenticity of crucial business documents is never compromised. The beauty of digital signatures is that it involves the employment of stronger security measures with biometric signatures capturing systems backed with extra top-notch encryption techniques to ensure the authenticity of a signer.
Authorized Certification Service providers like the TRA in UAE ensure the validity of your documents from a legal standpoint as well.
- Time Stamp and easy Auditing
Other than being non-repudiation, digital signatures need time-stamping to keep track of when documents were signed. This helps in preventing false submission of electronic documents by imposters. Additionally, digital signatures help improve record-keeping practices such as auditing and e-discovery of documents.
- Better Customer Experience
Do you want to provide 100% customer satisfaction? Well, digital signatures are convenient, time-saving and efficient making it possible for businesses to serve their customers more efficiently. Providing improved personalized services makes it easy for customers to engage with your business more easily, and quickly.
Go Completely Paperless with CIRCULARO

To help preserve business continuity and keep your daily operations running unscathed in these uncertain, isolated times, Circularo provides companies with a platform to sign, share, organize, and store all the important documentation online. That way, everyone can manage their contracts and documents without having to meet up face-to-face with a single soul.
Circularo eSigning & Agreement Management Platform is quickly becoming a critical part of business continuity and remote work initiatives as many companies recognize the importance of signing contracts and other business documents securely online, both within and outside their organization network.
Circularo eliminates all the inconveniences and threats at the same time, keeping the signing process simple while also making it remote and secure. All steps of the process are performed online within the easy-to-navigate Circularo platform, including the eSignature — an equally valid counterpart to the old-school, pen-on-paper signature.
On top of that, anyone can verify the authenticity and integrity of signed agreements through a unique DocID, so all signatories can be sure that the documents are protected against both inside and outside manipulation.

And at no point in the process is any of the participating parties required to come into close proximity with other people, be it the other signatories or the mailman. Circularo keeps both you and your documents safe.
Circularo is one of the very few international vendors being both certified by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) in the UAE, and at the same time, meeting the local data residency laws. The solution is fully Arabized, providing a great both right-to-left user experience for Arabic users and left-to-right for English-speaking users.

It is well established and trusted by many leading organizations in the GCC region, from developers, banks, investment funds to federal and local governments. As every business ‘runs on agreements’, Circularo is a horizontally applicable eSigning solution that virtually any kind of business environment can benefit from.
Although there are many different use cases and best practices, the core nature stays the same, the need to prepare actionable and signable documents and to have them signed online.
Document Management for the ‘New Normal’ with Digital Signature Solutions

Although being able to electronically sign all your documents is especially useful now when so many of us are working from home, Circularo is much more than just eSigning. It’s an online space where you can draft agreements, approve or request the approval of important documents before they are signed, sign contracts alone or with other people, set deadlines and expiration dates, securely store, manage, and categorize all the significant documentation, and the product is constantly evolving and improving to answer its users’ needs.
Simply put, Circularo is a modern, useful tool designed to make business easier and daily tasks more simple. Any company can benefit from using it especially now as we are entering the “new normal”, where the way we do things is rapidly changing and work is steadily shifting from the “real world” to the internet.
Are You Ready to Try on CIRCULARO Digital Signature Platform?

Considering all the above important reasons as to why digital signature should be used in corporate businesses, why not get the right signature for your business today? This will make the running of your business much easier.
Circularo provides the technology platform and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) fully managed in Microsoft Azure. Its seamless Microsoft 365 online integration and built-in document management capabilities make a real difference. Moreover it is approved by TRA in UAE.

The platform fits very well into many digital transformation and paperless initiatives as it enables organizations to prepare, sign, track and organize agreements online in hours, not days. Circularo Digital Signatures are compliant with world-class standards of security, privacy, data protection, and electronic signature industry regulations.
Get in touch with us to book a demo or consult on Digital Signature solutions for your business.
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