CW+ Premium Content/CW Middle East

US blockchain identity platform firm ShoCard is working with Alhamrani Universal, Saudi Arabia’s largest automated teller machine (ATM) provider, to develop the country’s first biometric bank access technologies. The ShoCard prototype is aimed at solving card fraud issues that continue to blight banks and consumers globally. A study by Gemini Advisory showed that in the US alone, 60 million credit cards were compromised last year and sold on the dark web. The Saudi Arabian trial will enable local consumers to use their faces and blockchain-based apps to withdraw money from cashpoint machines instead of PIN numbers. The ID authentication prototype, currently under test, can communicate across banks and uses blockchain to confirm an individual’s identity without accessing the bank’s database. “ShoCard will solve the issue of card fraud at ATMs,” said Armin Ebrahimi, founder and CEO of ShoCard. “It fits nicely into existing ATM technology, which usually already has a camera installed, and makes the customer experience as seamless ...