Face Verification Replaces ATM Cards At 8 OCBC Bank ATMs

Singaporeans will now be able to use face verification to check their balance or withdraw money at eight Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) automated teller machine (ATMs).

Credit: VCG

OCBC Bank has announced that they are planning to use face verification on select ATMs across the country to provide added convenience to customers accessing high-touch ATM services such as balance enquiries and cash withdrawals. The bank is the first to tap into Singapore’s National Digital Identity infrastructure, SingPass Face Verification, to verify customers’ identities for banking transactions at ATMs without the need for ATM cards.

Sunny Quek, OCBC Bank’s Head of Consumer Financial Services Singapore, mentioned that face verification will “add a layer of convenience to more customers” as they access their banking touchpoints since many customers were already getting used to withdrawing money through scanning a QR code instead of using an ATM card.

In order to use face verification at an OCBC ATM, a customer must select the ATM service they want before entering their NRIC number on the ATM screen. After which, they will be prompted to position their face within a frame to have their face scanned. A specially installed web-enabled camera will then take the scan and verifies it in real-time against the national biometric database to which OCBC Bank’s ATM Network is digitally linked to. The customer will be able to proceed with their transaction once verification is successful.

SingPass’ Face Verification feature Credit: Singapore Government Technology Agency

The new face verification feature will be rolling out anytime in March 2021. The feature will first be used in the following select ATMs across Singapore:

• OCBC Tampines Centre Two

• Taman Jurong Shopping Centre

• Great Eastern, Pickering Street

• OCBC Tampines Centre One

• HBD Hub Level 1

• 103 Yishun Ring Road

• OCBC Campus

• Geylang Road 7-Eleven

OCBC Bank has plans to extend the face verification feature for other types of ATM transactions after rolling the feature out to its entire ATM network. Cash deposits, funds transfers to other banks, cashcard top-ups and credit card bill payments are the next types of transactions to have face verification come next year.

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Written by John Paul Joaquin