Biometric Cards Can Enable Higher Contactless Payment Caps: FPC

Fingerprint Cards (FPC) is once again pushing the benefits of contactless payment technology. In its latest blog post, the company notes that contactless payments have gone up since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, even in countries (like Germany) that have been slower to switch from cash to cards.

The logic behind that trend is fairly straightforward. Contactless payments are more sanitary than PIN pads and cash exchanges, which is why many countries – including Canada, the Netherlands, and New Zealand – have raised the cap for contactless transactions in response to the recent outbreak. However, those higher caps do highlight some of the lingering fears that people have about contactless cards. Even though consumers and financial institutions generally agree that higher payment caps would be more convenient, a sizable portion of the population cites security concerns as their primary reason for avoiding contactless payments.

FPC acknowledges those concerns, and argues that any increase in the payment cap needs to be paired with comparable security improvements. That’s where biometric technology comes into play. The company suggests that mobile devices have made people more comfortable with the idea of biometric authentication, and that biometric payment cards can facilitate higher payment caps while mitigating the threat of fraud.

FPC also believes that there is a large public appetite for biometric cards. The company reports that 56 percent of consumers indicated that they would like to own a biometric payment card, and that the vast majority (88 percent) of banking executives identified contactless payments as one of the top priorities for their company.

Of course, FPC is well positioned to satisfy that demand. The company’s technology has already been deployed in 20 contactless payment trials, many of which are now moving towards the commercial phase. To reassure customers, FPC has detailed the rigorous testing process that biometric cards need to complete before they can be released to the public.

(Originally posted on Mobile ID World)