Samsung and Mastercard team up to develop payment card with built-in fingerprint reader

Samsung and Mastercard are working together to develop a biometric credit card, the companies have announced. 

The new cards will appeal both for their added security, and the hygiene benefits of not needing to touch the buttons on a key pad.

It also adds an extra layer of security to currently available credit cards by verifying the cardholder’s identity via a unique fingerprint.

The cardholder’s fingerprint will only be stored on the card itself, and the feature would work with both point-of-sale terminals and ATMs.

Karthik Ramanathan, Senior Vice President, Cyber & Intelligence Solutions, Asia Pacific, Mastercard commented:

“As consumers embrace the safety and convenience of contactless payments, Mastercard will leverage its cybersecurity and intelligence expertise and global payments network in this three-way partnership to enhance cardholder security with a biometric solution supporting fast, frictionless payment experiences that are protected at every point”.

Samsung Card will first rollout the tech in South Korea, and plans to do so later this year.

The companies emphasised that the adoption of the solution will be a gradual process, starting from corporate credit cards that have more frequent international transactions.

Through their signing of a memorandum of understanding, the companies enter a strategic collaboration for the development of this technology. 

However, as this is memorandum of understanding, details on how exactly the product will work remain ambiguous, and will likely only be revealed closer to its release.