Hong Kong bank bringing finger vein identification to its ATMs citywide

A Bank of China Hong Kong spokesperson said Tuesday they expected to bring finger vein identification to all of the bank’s ATMs across the city.

“Facial recognition can be affected by shape, light and other environmental factors. It fails sometimes,” explained Wang Lan, deputy general manager of the bank’s e-finance centre, in an interview with South China Morning Post. “But finger veins can’t be duplicated. The success rate is much higher than facial recognition. It is reliable.”

Customers need to register once by scanning two fingers at a counter to use the service. Once registered, they can use their finger instead of a signature at the counter or using a password at an ATM.

The bank first tested the new feature at front desks in late 2016 and at two ATMs last July. The service was gradually extended to all branches and 160 ATMs in December. The bank will continue rolling out the feature to all of its 400 cash machines in the city.

Article Topics

Asia  |  ATM  |  banking  |  biometrics  |  finger vein  |  identity verification