Fidor Bank plans contactless cards with fingerprint ID

German neobank Fidor Bank is planning to roll out a new generation of contactless bank cards later this year which include fingerprint ID to authorise payments.

The novel cards are created by fellow fintech Zwipe, which specialises in biometric payment Visa and Mastercard cards through its Zwipe Pay platform.

Details on the exact rollout are scant, but Fidor committed to issuing the cards to customers in Germany “during the second half of 2022”.

“Next generation payment cards powered by on-card fingerprint authentication will greatly help to differentiate our payment offerings with respect to a seamless checkout experience and uplifted transaction security,” said Fidor Bank’s CEO Boris Joseph.

“We are delighted to take this big step with Zwipe, a well-known pioneer in biometric authentication and payment solutions.”

To use Zwipe an account holder’s fingerprint is enrolled, typically through a mobile app, and then securely linked with the fingerprint sensor mounted on their new bank card.

Contactless payment can then be made with an added layer of security, and without requiring a PIN fallback.

“We are grateful for Fidor Bank’s confidence in joining forces with Zwipe to bring biometric payment cards to Germany, one of the largest payment markets in Europe,” said Zwipe CEO André Løvestam.

“Fidor Bank’s position as a leading digital bank and Zwipe’s disruptive technology in biometric payments lay the foundation for a mutually rewarding collaboration. We are fully committed to ensure a successful pilot and market launch in Germany”.

Based in Norway, Zwipe has signed several banking pilots in the last few months including Modularsoft in Malaysia and the National Bank of Iraq.