Next, Idex Biometrics win volume fingerprint sensor orders amid steps to change course

An OEM distributor in China has placed a mass production order of fingerprint sensors from Next Biometrics to use for in biometric banking applications.

The order for Basalt FAP 20 sensors follows an initial engagement with the unnamed partner to provide biometrics for China ID products. That initial engagement, announced in the third fiscal quarter of 2024, noted the sensors will be used for customer authentication.

Next says it is targeting annual volumes under the deal that will bring in 0.8 million Norwegian kroner (approximately US$81,000). Deliveries are expected to start during this quarter.

The company has also completed another private placement, issuing 4.7 million new shares at a subscription price of NOK 4.25 each, to raise NOK 20 million ($2 million).

The private placement was announced on August 20, as part of a report of tumultuous earnings, but the terms were revised due to the company’s share price falling below the subscription price. Free warrants redeemable for an additional share at NOK 3.90 were added to each share subscription.

Next stock was trading below NOK 3.00 on the Oslo Stock Exchange Thursday afternoon.

The company also closed private placements for $10.5 million in 2021 and $5.5 million in 2023.

When the private placement was announced, Next said the funds would be used for “general corporate purposes.”

Idex’ product pivot to biometrics payment and physical access

DigAware, a product division of U.S.-based strategy consultancy Emnovate has ordered 45,000 fingerprint sensors from Idex Biometrics.

Idex and DigAware announced a deal to collaborate on a card-based biometric physical access control solution in January. The sensor supply deal positions DigAware to scale its access control business in America ahead of a planned global expansion, according to the company announcement.

“Our investment in this market is driven by the rapidly growing demand for secure access control and improve safety within our target markets,” says DigAware Founder and CEO Robin Bienfait. “Throughout the development process, we have been impressed by the speed and accuracy of the Idex sensor and biometric matching software, as well as the outstanding support from the Idex team.”

But Idex is in the midst of pivoting from supplying components for biometric solutions to operating as “a fully-fledged product company,” as CEO and CFO Anders Storbråten puts it.

The company announced the launch of a new portfolio of products for biometric payments and access control last week, along with a redesigned website. Idex wants to address the markets for Zero Trust security and fraud detection in digital payments, and says it signed multiple partnerships during the third quarter targeting commercial launches this calendar year.

“Our new product portfolio positions us at the forefront of the global shift toward passwordless authentication,” Storbråten says.

“This shift significantly strengthens our value proposition, expands our addressable market, and enhances our ability to scale recurring revenue,” he adds.

Idex also recently disclosed that the second tranche of its private placement that raised $3 million in July ended up being made up of 4,359,315 shares, which were lent to the company by Storbråten. The company has now returned the borrowed shares, and the company’s CEO and CFO and close relations now hold 20.3 percent of the total.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  fingerprint biometrics  |  fingerprint sensors  |  Idex Biometrics  |  Next Biometrics  |  stocks