Cultivating an inclusive ethos in payment technology

Written by Catharina Eklof, Chief Commercial Officer, IDEX Biometrics

As we move towards a cashless world, accessibility and inclusion have come to the fore. Biometricenabled payment cards are among the innovations being recognised as key to ensuring security and transaction experience amid increasing contactless limits.

Earlier this year, challenger bank Rocker launched Sweden’s first biometric payment card – a huge commercial milestone and a step forward for the inclusive and diverse payment ecosystem. Supported by IDEMIA and powered by IDEX Biometrics’ (IDEX) cutting-edge fingerprint sensor technology, the card is easy to use, helping customers improve their financial lives without PINs or passwords.

Diversity and inclusivity have been instrumental in bringing the industry to this point, as well as being a key focus for the future to cultivate an inclusive ethos and drive growth and innovation in payment technology.

Inclusivity In The Payment Ecosystem

Women are one of the most excluded demographics in payments. This is a worldwide issue, but particularly so in developing countries. One reason for this is that women are less likely to own a mobile phone or use mobile internet.

Despite this, women still make up the majority of today’s retail consumers – indicating a missed opportunity for growing economies. IDEX research shows that most women are comfortable embracing biometric technology to overcome the digital divide. As one example, 91 percent of women in Brazil are ready to switch from PIN to fingerprint authentication for in-store payments.

Payment diversity, however, doesn’t stop at women – it includes making payments accessible to all demographics, including the elderly, vulnerable and unbanked populations. Those suffering from dementia, literacy challenges or impaired vision

About The Expert

Catharina can find current payment methods extremely challenging and introducing fingerprint biometrics into payment cards offers a simple and easy way to authenticate payments with the simple touch of a finger.

Eklof is Chief Commercial Officer of IDEX Biometrics (NASDAQ: IDBA) where she brings seamless payment experiences to consumers around the world through world-leading biometric sensor solutions. She is also a non-executive board director of Avanza Bank (NASDAQ Stockholm: AZA), Sweden’s largest digital bank.

Catharina has 20 years of global executive management across financial services, retail, travel, and security. She has led the commercialisation of new customer-centric solutions across Fortune 500 companies including more than 12 years spent in leadership roles at Mastercard in Brussels, London, and New York. Catharina established Mastercard’s global strategic merchant programme, bringing digital payment solutions and new, data-driven business models to organisations around the world.

Catharina Eklof holds an MBA in International Business and a Master of Science in Economics from the University of Uppsala, Sweden. She is based in Brussels, Belgium.

Today, despite increasing numbers of people gaining access to banking services, over one billion adults remain unbanked around the globe. While the majority of the unbanked live in the developing world, around 42 percent of Europeans currently lack basic digital skills that prevent them from accessing online or mobile banking.

This needs to be tackled head-on to ensure people have access to paid services, especially in countries that are moving away from the use of cash. For example, in 2020, just nine percent of all transactions in Sweden used cash.

Advances in biometric fingerprint authentication can be particularly effective to support these consumers as the person is linked directly to their card by fingerprint alone, without a smartphone or the need to remember PINs. Remote enrolment capabilities also mean that users don’t need to visit a bank branch to start using this technology.

Encouraging Diversity

Currently, women make up only 28 percent of the workforce in STEM roles. In order to grow these industries, this urgently needs to change. Biometrics is just one field where a diverse workforce is beneficial.

As a field underpinned by a wide span of technologies including system engineering, custom application- specific integrated circuits (ASIC), sensor development and cryptology, the biometric industry requires the creativity and collaborative power of every possible diverse mind and personality. Everyone has a unique background experience and a unique perspective. Problems are solved faster and more elegantly when everyone approaches a problem a different way. Attracting a diverse talent pool to the industry, therefore, will not only help strengthen it but also deliver future growth.

I have always supported women in the industry, starting with my involvement in the women’s talent programme while at Mastercard, which included mentorship, training and networking on a global scale. At IDEX, I continue to mentor new talent and share my own experiences within tech. In addition to supporting women in my industry, together with the IDEX team I am formalising our engagement around diversity and inclusion. We are establishing our environmental, social and governance (ESG) agenda, ensuring that sustainability and diversity is integral to who we are as a business and how we operate.

As a woman in an executive role in a heavily male-dominated industry, I am in a privileged position to act as a bridge for women who are interested in biometrics but may feel that the industry is too specialised. Here, IDEX is focused on connecting a very powerful technology with use-cases that have real meaning and can make a difference for millions of people – and that’s something that many people can become a part of.

IDEX is a firm believer in the importance of promoting inclusion. This means offering financial education and developing solutions that foster an inclusive environment for those from diverse backgrounds or for those who would otherwise be financially excluded. Biometric payment cards and offline wallets (a digital wallet that is stored on a platform not financial inclusion around the globe by providing simple and secure authentication to all.

Building An Inclusive Future

IDEX Biometrics is leading the way in biometric technological development. We believe diversity and inclusion is part of our DNA, which brings with it immeasurable innovation and developmental potential. Our diverse team of engineers has pioneered the industry. Our 120 team members operate across 13 different locations around the world and speak over 12 languages. Whilst there is always more to be done, we are pleased by the growing number of women in leadership roles.

We are committed to building solutions that will drive payment inclusion around the world, actively working alongside card manufacturers and financial institutions to bring biometric payment cards to the mass market and tackle the challenges around financial inclusion and diversity. Both are essential to the future of tech and payments, paving the way for a more equal payment ecosystem and untapped innovation and growth.

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