What's the future for biometrics in global payments?

Global payments methods have expanded significantly in recent years, with contactless platforms from tech firms like Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay leading the way. But along with these advances in financial services technology, there have been headlines about the mass closure of local bank branches. For example, in the UK over 1,000 high street branches are estimated to have closed in the two years to December 20161. Banking executives are justifiably focusing on both the decreasing numbers of customers using their branches, and the increasing numbers of individuals banking online. Yet despite the increased take-up of technology, the UK's financial services industry remains behind the curve in adopting biometric identification2. This article reviews the changes underway and reports on a new survey into how user acceptance - the critical element in the adoption of biometric ID verification - can be maximised.