Shift to contactless payments continues as vein biometrics, cards partnerships unveiled

FinGo has closed a new partnership with Mastercard, expanding the reach of its vein biometrics payment system exponentially.

Following the beginning of the collaboration, FinGo will have access to the white-labeled Mastercard Payment Gateway Services (MPGS), effectively allowing Mastercard users to pay by scanning their unique finger vein pattern.

The move represents a major milestone for the wider adoption of biometric payments around the world.

“Our partnership with MPGS will allow us to bring biometric payments to a much wider global audience and accelerate our expansion particularly within MENA, which is one of our key strategic regions,” said Simon Binns, FinGo’s Chief Commercial Officer,

“We’re delighted that MPGS recognizes the added value and potential of FinGo, and fully shares our commitment towards making payments accessible for all by embracing biometric identity technology,” he added.

Mobile wallet payments to grow exponentially by 2024

The partnership between FinGo and Mastercard is yet another sign of the global shift towards a cashless society.

According to Jastra Kranjec, editor of the Korea IT Times, the phenomenon has, in turn, created a substantial possibility for the wider adoption of mobile wallets.

Writing on the daily news site, Kranjec mentioned a report by TradingPlatforms, according to which mobile wallets will make one-third of all POS transactions worldwide by 2024.

This growth was partially spurred by the necessity of contactless solutions during the pandemic, Kranjec explained, but also the inherent practicality and ease of use of mobile wallets.

The editor also mentioned data from Statista showing that 1.48 billion people worldwide are expected to use mobile payments services by the end of the year.

According to the report, Asian countries, and China, in particular, would be at the forefront of mobile wallets’ usage, followed loosely by the U.S. and the UK.

Kona I partners with Sojitz on fingerprint cards

Kona I has entered a new partnership with general trading company Sojitz, ETNews reports.

As part of the collaboration, Kona I has launched a new fingerprint biometric payment card to the Japanese market.

The card is compliant with FIDO2 standards and encrypts user fingerprint information on the device via a hardware security key.

Moving forward, Kona I said it will expand its partnership with Sojitz to provide its biometric cards to a wider network of financial service providers.

“In the future, we will develop a variety of products based on the industry’s highest level of digital authentication technology,” the company said, commenting on the news.

Cashless payments create opportunity for cards, wearables

The prediction that only 7 percent of in-store purchases in the UK will be made with cash by 2024 comes as little surprise, Idex Biometrics CEO Vince Graziani says, with the pandemic shifting the attitudes of many cashless payment sceptics.

“To support the move away from cash, however, fingerprint biometric identification in payment cards will become essential to help consumers navigate the shopping and transaction process safely, speedily and securely,” Graziani told Biometric Update in an emailed statement. “By linking individuals directly to their payment card by using their fingerprint, users can be safe in the knowledge that they are the only person that can use the card, as ultimately there is nothing more secure, or personal, than a fingerprint. It will be methods such as these, that eliminate the incentive for theft or misuse of payments cards, which will enable a successful and safe transition towards touch-free and convenient cashless payments.”

Alternatives to cards could be found in wearables like smart rings, with Japanese consumer technology company MTG Co. launching the Evering to provide a complete digital wallet solution, according to Bloomberg. The chip-embedded ring harvests power from payment terminals, like biometric payment cards, and can also be used with smart lock systems.

MTG agreed to sell 3,000 Everings to Visa in May. They can be linked to credit cards, with users checking their payment histories through smartphones.

A video featuring a Digiseq ring being used as a payment device in combination with a smartphone was recently shared in a LinkedIn post by Consult Hyperion Director David Birch, who is also non-executive chairman at Digiseq.

The ring uses a contactless chip from Infineon, which could be built into any number of consumer products.

Article Topics

biometric cards  |  biometric payments  |  biometrics  |  Fingo  |  fraud prevention  |  Kona I  |  Mastercard  |  secure transactions  |  vein biometrics  |  vein recognition  |  wearables