Welcome to ID Tech’s digest of identity industry news. Here’s what you need to know about the world of digital identity and biometrics today:
Pokemon Card Stores Add Facial Recognition to Enforce Entry Limits
The Pokemon Company will deploy facial recognition technology to manage visitor entry and ticket distribution at five pop-up Pokemon Card Stores operating across Japan from July 31 through August 16. Customers aged elementary-school age and older must submit to daily facial recognition scans at AEON Mall Natori, Chofu PARCO, AEON Mall Higashiura, AEON Mall Hiroshima Fuchu, and AEON Mall Chikushino as a mandatory condition for store access or receiving numbered admission tickets. The system cross-references facial data in real time to enforce a strict limit of one entry per person per day, issuing automated alerts to staff when repeat visits or duplicate ticket collection attempts occur to enforce store access limits and curb scalping.
Hong Kong Adds Facial Verification to Most Online Pension Withdrawals
Hong Kong’s Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority is introducing mandatory real-time facial verification for online retirement benefit withdrawals on the eMPF Platform starting at the end of July. The biometric identity check applies to standard age-65 retirement claims and most early withdrawal requests, requiring applicants to complete step-up authentication via the government’s iAM Smart mobile app followed by a live facial scan within the application. The central authority implemented the transaction-level biometric control to prevent unlawful early withdrawals, false eligibility declarations, and fraudulent claims submitted using counterfeit identity cards while requiring trustees to verify retirement benefit claimants and secure digital pension withdrawals.
Nepal Makes National ID Verification Mandatory for New Digital Wallets
Nepal Rastra Bank has issued the fifteenth amendment to the Integrated Payment Systems Directive, mandating that licensed payment service providers verify citizen identities against the government’s central National ID electronic database when opening new digital wallets. Under the updated regulations, wallet operators must integrate with the government’s National ID system to replace reliance on non-validated customer documents during digital onboarding. Additionally, providers must collect National ID declarations from all existing wallet users by October 17, requiring cardholders to update their account profiles with their National ID numbers to standardize digital payment onboarding and eliminate duplicate wallet accounts.
Pakistan Accepts Pak ID Digital Card for Passport Identity Checks
The Directorate General of Immigration and Passports in Pakistan has begun accepting digital national identity cards displayed within NADRA’s Pak ID mobile application as valid proof of identity for passport applications. Citizens applying at passport offices across Pakistan or at overseas diplomatic missions can present the app’s Digital Card feature on their mobile devices when physical Computerized National Identity Cards are unavailable. Managed by the National Database and Registration Authority, the mobile credential integration aligns with national digital transformation goals by providing an authoritative digital alternative to paper and plastic identity documents to streamline passport identity verification across international locations.
World Foundation Raises 52 5 Million in Locked Token Sale
World Foundation has secured $52.5 million in capital through a strategic, locked sale of WLD tokens led by Pantera Capital, alongside Bain Capital Crypto, Eightco Holdings, Selini Capital, and Susquehanna Crypto. The acquired WLD tokens are subject to a 12-month lockup period, with proceeds directed toward expanding enterprise, consumer, and AI-agent integrations for the World ID proof-of-human network. As artificial intelligence advances accelerate automated bot activity, the foundation aims to scale its identity ecosystem—which relies on iris-scanning Orb devices to verify unique human personhood without revealing personal identity details—to expand proof of personhood infrastructure across enterprise platforms.
NADRA Makes Iris Enrollment Free Across Pakistan
Pakistan’s National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) has made iris biometric enrollment free of charge at every national registration center across the country for citizens aged three and older. The nationwide initiative allows adults and parents of young children to add contactless iris scan templates to their existing national identity profiles alongside fingerprints and facial images. By establishing a multimodal biometric baseline, the authority aims to improve overall identity matching accuracy and provide alternative verification channels for individuals who encounter difficulty with contact fingerprint sensors to strengthen national identity records and multimodal biometric verification.
Belgium Opens Five Lot Framework for Identity Document Biometric Sensors
The Belgian federal administrative service responsible for identity cards and the National Register has launched a 48-month public procurement framework divided into five distinct lots for biometric sensors and peripheral equipment. Published via Tenders Electronic Daily under reference 515789-2026, the tender seeks hardware and support services to equip official enrollment and issuance points for national identity cards, residence permits, and travel credentials. Interested vendors must submit requests to participate by September 3 to provide standards-compliant biometric capture devices that integrate with central registration workflows to equip government document issuance centers with biometric capture hardware.
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
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