Rocker to launch fingerprint payment cards in 2021

The F.CODE payment card adopts a user-friendly biometric authentication procedure that makes transactions quicker, more hygienic and more secure, according to Rocker and IDEMIA

Swedish fintech company Rocker and identity and security specialist IDEMIA are developing a biometric payment card that will launch as a proof of concept early next year.

Scheduled for deployment among Rocker customers in Q1 2021, Rocker and IDEMIA will carry out their first ever fingerprint ID card proof of concept in Northern Europe. Payments with the card are fingerprint-checked in store.

Prototype of Rocker’s fingerprint ID debit card

The F.CODE payment card adopts a user-friendly biometric authentication procedure that makes transactions quicker, more hygienic and more secure, according to Rocker and IDEMIA.

IDEMIA’s technology ensures that fingerprints are stored in the chip on the card, rather than in a remote database. The battery-free card that will be rolled out in the middle of 2021 after the proof of concept is powered by the payment terminal.

Rocker is based in Stockholm, Sweden, and counts Scandinavian media group Schibsted as its largest shareholder. The fintech company offers loans, payments and savings, licensed as a payment institution in the EU.

The fintech company aims to offer the F.CODE card as a new service in its growing offering of retail financial services that are easier to use, more flexible and better priced.

Jonas Hultin, chief product officer and one of Rocker’s three founders, says the fintech company is “moving at a high pace to provide new and attractive innovations to customers”.

He continues: “Launching biometric F.CODE debit cards is part of our strategy to offer smart and secure payment solutions across platforms, whether you wish to pay with your mobile, a card or with a transfer. In doing so, we are first in Sweden and one of the first in the world to offer this payment technology for consumers.”

Amanda Gourbault, executive vice president of financial institutions at IDEMIA, says: “We are proud to partner with Rocker and to shape the future of payments, hand in hand with a fintech at the cutting edge of innovation. We are delighted to ensure an innovative yet seamless experience to Rocker’s customers thanks to the use of biometrics.”

Image: Rocker

Mark Dugdale