Sila
Sila Technical Briefing
Published May 16, 2023
Supported by IowaEDA and Brale
Overview
Shamir Karkal, co-founder of Sila and previously Simple and BBVA\'s API platforms, demos the Sila money API — a developer-first platform built around three primitives (users, wallets, transactions) that lets any builder onboard users, run KYC, link bank accounts, and move ACH. The demo app at demo.silamoney.com onboards both individuals and businesses via unique alphanumeric handles; KYC runs asynchronously through Socure/LexisNexis (3–15 seconds typical) with document-upload fallback for IDs or formation docs. Every user gets one wallet by default but can own many (one-to-many), enabling segregated-account patterns. Sila supports three ways to link bank accounts: raw routing+account entry, your own Plaid integration via processor tokens, or Sila\'s managed Plaid instance (Plaid sandbox user_good/pass_good). Same-day ACH pulls $1,234 into the wallet in roughly five minutes in sandbox — deliberately slow so developers don\'t build code expecting real-time settlement. Wallet-to-wallet transfers settle on Sila\'s ledger in seconds; external redeems push ACH out to any linked bank account.
0:00 Introduction to Sila
Shamir Karkal, co-founder of Sila and previously Simple and BBVA's API platforms, introduces Sila — a developer-first API to onboard users, verify identity, hold money, and move ACH payments in the US.
1:30 Sila demo app and API console
The demo uses demo.silamoney.com, where Shamir has dropped in API keys from the Sila Console. Sila's model is built around three entities: users, wallets, and transactions — with all responses surfaced on the right panel for inspection.
2:00 Individual vs. business entities
Sila onboards both individuals and businesses via the /register endpoint. Each entity gets a unique alphanumeric handle — Shamir picks one that isn't taken — and then selects a KYC path from several supported flows.
3:00 KYC with document upload fallback
KYC is asynchronous (3–15 seconds typical) and delivered via webhook. If Socure or LexisNexis flags a field (SSN, address), Sila supports document upload — IDs for individuals, formation docs for businesses — to complete verification.
5:00 Wallets — pockets of cash, one-to-many
Wallets are just balance-holding pockets — every user gets one by default, but customers can create as many as they want and name them anything. The wallet-to-user relationship is one-to-many, which enables segregated account patterns.
5:30 Link bank accounts — routing+account, Plaid, Plaid-via-Sila
Sila supports linking external bank accounts via raw routing+account entry, your own Plaid integration with processor tokens, or Sila's managed Plaid flow — Shamir uses the last option with Plaid's sandbox credentials (user_good/pass_good).
7:30 Same-day ACH and realistic sandbox timing
Sila pulls $1,234 in via same-day ACH. Amounts are denominated in "Sila" (1 cent). The sandbox deliberately takes ~5 minutes to complete ACH transactions so developers don't build code expecting real-time settlement.
9:00 ACH transfers between users and external redeems
Transfers between Sila wallets settle on Sila's internal ledger in seconds. Redeem transactions push funds out to an external linked bank account via ACH. Both flows are exposed as dedicated endpoints that chain cleanly from KYC → wallet → transaction.
Presented by Shamir Kharkel — Sila · website
Topics: Payments, Banking-as-a-Service, Developer Tools
