Banking in Canada can be a murky subject – one that we hope to shed some light on with a series of highly informational articles.
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The Nymi Band: Would You Use Heartbeat Banking ?
– ratesupermarket.ca
It seems a security tech arms race is afoot in the banking sector.
While mobile banking has been going mainstream – 31 per cent of Canadians reported using mobile banking last year, up from five per cent in 2010 according to the Canadian Bankers Association – future trends point towards even more secure banking measures that recognize you (that’s right, you specifically dear reader) and your unique biological characteristics.
Bionic banking is here.
The Biometric Banking Experience
There have been previous forays into biometrics like Scotiabank subsidiary Tangerine’s announcement to add voice and fingerprint recognition to mobile banking, but the recent development from Toronto-based wearable startup Bionym ups the ante with heartbeat credit card authentication for RBC and MasterCard.
At the centre of the scheme is the Nymi Band, a watch-like device that measures a person’s heart rate and links their unique cardiac rhythm to their identity. Much like using a fingerprint, the tech offers a higher degree of certainty letting them use their cards without entering passcodes, provided they’re wearing the device…
