Interswitch ,a payments platform has introduced an advanced biometrics feature on Point-of-Sale terminals & Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) in a bid to reduce fraud and avail customers of more reliable digital payment and transaction solutions.
In view of the growing electronic fraud across the world, discerning customers are looking for a more secure and efficient alternative to protect their funds and assets as an improvement on the level of security provided by passwords and PINs
While this solution exists in silos in the Nigeria market, the Interswitch effort, birthed in collaboration with SterlingPRO, which serves as the strategic partner, will be the first and only effort yet to integrate the biometrics solution across ATMs and PoS portals, cutting across multiple issuers, acquirers, and merchants.
Akeem Lawal, the Managing Director, Payment Processing & Switching (Interswitch Purepay), says the firm will continue to design products leveraging cutting-edge technology that will constantly enhance payment security as it unlocks new frontiers and sets the pace for the rest of the African tech ecosystem.
He said, “Biometrics is changing the payment landscape and will shape the future of digital identification. Therefore, we are set to introduce the biometrics feature on PoS & ATMs to the market. We are excited about the introduction of this solution because we are confident that on successful activation of the solution across the market, Nigerian cardholders can easily transact without the fear of their accounts being compromised.”
In addition to the biometrics solution, Interswitch will be expanding the card personalization and instant issuance offering across the Nigerian payment ecosystem, a solution that is a win-win for both financial institutions and the customers. The customers get to personalize their cards with instant access, the banks /issuers can enhance their customer experience by reducing their wait time, managing their card portfolio more efficiently and enhancing the security of the cards through the shortened issuance process.
Biometrics promises to further help drive the growth of the economy. According to Statista, the global digital identity solution market that biometrics is part of is expected to grow from $23.3 billion in 2020 to $49.5 billion in 2026.