French consumer interest, regulations boost biometric payment cards’ prospects

French consumers are increasingly keen to add biometric payment cards to their wallets, according to a survey from Fingerprint Cards which shows 70 percent of those familiar with the technology would like to be able to use it.

The survey, conducted in collaboration with Kantar, shows 59 percent of French consumers overall want a biometric payment card, up from 50 percent in 2019 and 51 percent in 2020. More than half also said they would consider switching banks to get one.

Asked if they would pay a premium of €3.20 (roughly US$3.70) to get one, 55 percent answered affirmatively, up from 50 percent last year.

Among those interested in using biometric payment cards, 71 percent cite the safety benefits in the case of a lost or stolen card.

“It’s exciting to see the high interest among consumers, and in a country first to roll this out in a larger scale,” comments Michel Roig, SVP Business Line Payments and Access at Fingerprint Cards. “It took time and considerable expertise to equip payment cards with fingerprint sensors. 2021 and beyond will see biometric cards deployed by banks and financial institutions around the world, for the benefit of their business, merchants and consumers. Banks need to understand the technology itself to make informed decisions, to offer customers a card that enhances the shopping experience, rather than hindering it.”

Biometric payment cards for impending SCA requirement

The strong customer authentication requirement of Europe’s PSD2 regulation “is certain to produce shockwaves across the payments industry,” but can be supported by future-proof technologies like biometric payment cards, according to the first in a series of blog posts from Idex Biometrics on SCA.

Idex Chief Commercial Officer Catharina Eklof writes that the current implementation deadline delay is likely the last, meaning retailers will need to be ready to carry out SCA by March 2022.

Eklof reviews the requirement and provides advice to businesses preparing for the change.

A recent market forecast suggests fingerprint sensors are still a fast-growing area, set to increase by $2.3 billion over the next five years.

Article Topics

biometric cards  |  biometrics  |  consumer adoption  |  Fingerprint Cards  |  fingerprint sensors  |  Idex Biometrics  |  payments  |  secure transactions