IDEX issues Q1 2017 results, holds general annual meeting

IDEX has issued the financial results for Q1 2017 in which it reported revenues of NOK 6.7 million (US$0.78 million), up from NOK 3.6 million (US$0.42 million) in Q1 2016.

The company said it is making “significant progress on commercialization of its sensor solution for biometric cards.”

IDEX developed a new biometric card with Mastercard which the company unveiled last month.

The company recently completed two successful end-user trials in South Africa with supermarket retailer Pick n Pay and Absa Bank.

The employees performed live transactions with the biometric cards using existing payment infrastructure, which yielded positive results in both trials.

In the coming months, the company will conduct additional trials with the biometric card in Europe and in Asia Pacific. After the trials are completed, the card will undergo final certification prior to its rollout later this year.

IDEX also launched in the first quarter its next generation ASIC platform for off-chip touch sensors which enables contactless payment cards.

The ASIC platform is expected to be sampling in Q2 2017 and will be ready for production later in 2017.

In regards to the mobile market, IDEX has continued to ship its Cardinal silicon sensor to LG in the first quarter.

The company said that the silicon-based sensors’ market environment and pricing being highly competitive with build-up in inventories, combined with lower than anticipated demand for one of its customer’s handsets, have affected its volumes.

The mobile market is moving towards infinity displays to maximize the viewable area of the displays, which requires the fingerprint sensor to either move to the back of the phone or to be integrated into the display. Both of these scenarios present opportunities for using the IDEX off-chip sensor.

The company’s off-chip technology enables a thin and bendable sensor made of an ISO-compliant, low-cost flexible polymer, which is well suited for smart card integration and standard card mass production processes.

Using this technology, IDEX has recently developed a sensor for contactless cards that is expected to be sampling in Q2 2017 and ready for production in H2 2017.

The opportunity for fingerprint sensors in biometric cards is the company’s main priority. IDEX is investing significant resources in developing its team, accelerating product development and technology innovation, and expanding its ecosystem partnerships to sustain its leadership position.

IDEX also held its annual general meeting on May 12 whereby all resolutions were made in accordance with the proposals by the board and the nomination committee in the notice of the meeting, issued on April 21.

The chairman, Morten Opstad, and board members Larry Ciaccia, Deborah Davis and Hanne Høvding were re-elected to the board for a two-year term. In addition, remaining board member, Andy MacLeod, is continuing in the second year of his term.

The nomination committee, which was re-elected for a two-year term, consists of chairman Harald Voigt and members Robert N. Keith and Rune Sundvall.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  financial results  |  fingerprint sensors  |  Idex Biometrics