Finance & Economics

First bank in Southeast Asia enables face recognition at ATMs

This comes after Singapore’s first and only rollout of QR code cash withdrawals in July 2019

OCBC

First bank in Southeast Asia enables face recognition at ATMs. Source: shutterstock.com

OCBC Bank has introduced facial biometrics for ATM services, thus taking Singapore closer to eliminating the need to carry around an ATM card.

For now, the new technology will be rolled out across 8 ATMs around the country. OCBC Bank will extend face verification for cash withdrawals to all OCBC Bank ATMs in Singapore progressively.

According to the report, OCBC Bank is the first to tap Singapore’s National Digital Identity infrastructure, SingPass Face Verification. This way, a customer’s scanned face is matched and verified against Singapore’s national biometric database containing the images and identities of 4 million Singapore residents.

Face verification is embedded with security features to prevent fraud, including liveness-detection technology that detects and blocks the use of photographs, videos, or masks during the verification process.

Singapore consumers are keen digital adopters – even the elderly. While cash is still a key mode of payment in Singapore, the digital overlay to get cash is very welcomed by consumers. Overall, digital adoption within OCBC has grown year-on-year in 2020 with more than 40% more customers signed up on PayNow, and PayNow transactions doubling, compared to 2019. QR code cash withdrawals at ATMs grew 88% year-on-year in 2020. With many customers already embracing QR cash withdrawals without having to use an ATM card, face verification will add a layer of convenience to more customers as they access our banking touchpoints
Mr Sunny Quek, OCBC Bank’s Head of Consumer Financial Services Singapore

To use face verification, customers should select the ATM service they want before entering their NRIC number on the ATM screen. Afterward, will then be prompted to position their face within a frame on the screen, while a web-enabled camera takes a scan of their face. It verifies in real-time the scanned image against the national biometric database which OCBC Bank’s ATM network is digitally linked to. Once the facial scan is verified, the customer can proceed with their ATM transaction.

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