Bank of America has struck a partnership with Samsung to start a pilot program that will allow Bank of America customers to login using a picture of their eye; the program will start with a group of 1,500 Samsung and Bank of America employees who will test the authentication for six months; according to a past report by American Banker, about half of Bank of America customers login to the mobile app using their fingerprint and the other half login with a username and password; according to Finovate, Samsung debuted this iris scanning technology at their Unpacked event in March and they claim it to be more secure than fingerprint scans. Source
Ant Financial has rolled out the world's first commercial application of a payment system that identifies payers using facial recognition technology; starting from September 1, a KFC restaurant in Hangzhou allows customers to authenticate their payments by having their faces scanned; the whole process, which takes about ten seconds, does not require users to take out their cell phones; the function is powered by Face ++ technology developed by Beijing startup Megvii. Source
Open banking is facilitating innovation across the banking sector and ING has plans to use it for voice automated artificial intelligence services; the bank's vision includes voice automated banking services through devices such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home, where digital assistants can pay bills and provide personalized advice through voice prompts; the bank is seeking to utilize new concepts being developed in Europe and has invested EUR800 million ($945 million) in a digital transformation. Source
Amazon's palm reader is having an impact on the fortune teller industry
Biometric authentication is becoming increasingly utilized; a few factors could help it become more integrated into mainstream technologies; an American Banker article suggests that devices need to be more compatible, consumers would need to be more accepting, multiple options need to be offered and the recognition needs to be simple; big strides have been made in 2016 however barriers to mainstream use still remain. Source
Amazon is currently in the early stages of building a new checkout terminal for coffee shops, fast-food restaurants and other...
FST Biometrics has raised $40 million and is developing a solution for facial recognition that detects your identity while you are in motion; the biometric technology presents a new solution for security identification; by detecting your identity it can be used to unlock doors and provide various other types of security access. Source
Experian will integrate BioCatch with its fraud prevention platform; the new platform services will use behavioral biometrics to help clients detect fraudulent credit card and loan applications; with BioCatch clients can consider a range of factors including the speed at which information is entered and how familiar a user is with the application process. Source
French bank BNP Paribas, along with Daon, has developed a new biometric login for their wealth management clients using their mobile device; the new service is called myBioPass and it allows users to login using a selfie; transactions are then authorized by fingerprint or voice recognition; the service is currently active for Luxembourg clients using iOS mobile devices; myBioPass will be added to desktops and Android devices later this year. Source
Wells Fargo has been active in biometrics; in 2014 it launched a startup accelerator led by EyeVerify which it now uses for eyeprint verification with its commercial banking customers; it is also working with Kasisto in its startup accelerator and plans to launch some virtual assistant offerings for employees and customers; it has also now announced a refocused effort in its Innovation Group that will be dedicated to AI, payments and application platform interfaces; Wells Fargo's management is committed to biometrics and the firm wants to be a leader in the technology with a specific focus currently on voice recognition. Source