Idemia and Zwipe sign exclusive deal for biometric payment card platform

Idemia and Zwipe have signed an exclusive partnership and distribution agreement to co-invest in a platform to bring biometric payment cards to the mass market. The companies plan to develop a technology platform that significantly reduces the complexity and cost of biometric payment card design and production to accelerate their adoption at scale.

The plan is for the companies to reduce the number of components necessary for integration, with a single chip taking the role of Secure Element, Microcontroller, and more than thirty external components, according to the announcement, mounted on a flexible PCB (Printed Circuit Board).

“This is a strategic, high profile project for Idemia. We are very excited about what this platform will enable in terms of market growth and the penetration of biometric payment cards. Idemia is delighted to partner with Zwipe, a company with a solid intellectual property portfolio and an expanding global customer network; we are confident that our new solution will command a leading position in the marketplace,” comments Idemia Executive Vice-President for Financial Institutions Activities Amanda Gourbault.

Zwipe will have exclusive rights to sell the solution to manufacturers worldwide for use in payment cards, wearables, and other payment products, while Idemia retains ownership of the technology and will sell its F.CODE payment card product to financial institutions. Zwipe recently began working with G+D to develop a wearable biometric payment device.

“We are excited and proud to enter a significant partnership with Idemia, a prominent global industry leader,” adds Zwipe CEO André Løvestam. “The platform represents a technological leap that will serve as a catalyst to enable full biometric payment card costs to come down significantly, driving mass volume market growth and complementing our current and future product portfolios. We look forward to bringing this platform to our customers to continue to shape the biometric payments industry.”

Zwipe has been partnering with card providers such as dz card to bring biometric smart cards to market. In a review of some of the technology’s major stakeholders earlier this year, Biometric Update was told major production volumes would likely first be produced late this year, at the earliest.

Article Topics

biometric cards  |  biometric payments  |  biometrics  |  F.CODE  |  IDEMIA  |  partnership  |  platform  |  secure element  |  Zwipe