India’s first artificial intelligence banking robot has made its debut in a branch of City Union Bank in Chennai, The Times of India reports... More
Archive: News in brief
Airport launches Android app to deliver offers via iBeacon
Hamad International Airport (HIA) in Qatar has launched an Android version of its mobile app, which uses iBeacon technology to deliver passengers information about special offers at retail outlets, as well as real-time details on flights, baggage claim and location-based services... More
Microsoft in blockchain trial for travel booking website
Australian travel booking website Webjet has teamed up with Microsoft to develop a blockchain proof-of-concept solution for online booking services... More
Citi launches global API Developer Hub
Citi has launched a global API Developer Hub to give developers access to APIs across eight usage categories including account management, peer-to-peer payments, money transfer to institutions, Citi rewards, investment purchases and account authorisation... More
Students develop SMS biometric authentication app
Four students from India’s Birla Institute of Technology and Science have developed an SMS-based biometric authentication system for use in rural areas with poor internet connection... More
Fake glasses fool face recognition
A team of researchers from Carnegie Mellon University has fooled face recognition algorithms using a pair of fake glasses, New Scientist reports... More
Apple Pay ranks fifth in online payments survey
Apple Pay now has a 0.25% share of payments on the top 10,000 websites, analytics firm SimilarTech reveals, ranking in fifth place behind PayPal with a 2.36% lead, followed by the PayPal Subscribe Button (0.98%), Stripe (0.35%) and Braintree (0.32%)... More
Bank al Etihad takes bill payments to ATMs
Customers of Jordan-based Bank al Etihad can now pay bills and top up their airtime at the bank’s ATMs... More
Orange Cash supports Apple Pay
Orange’s mobile wallet app Orange Cash now supports Apple Pay in France, with support from German payment firm Wirecard, the operator has announced... More
Half of European cards contactless by 2021
Half of all European cards will be contactless by 2021 and the volume of contactless payments will rise more than six-fold between 2015 and 2021 to almost 25bn — equivalent to 22% of all payments on European cards — RBR reveals... More
Apple Pay adds 31 Australian banks after Cuscal deal
Thirty-one Australian banks and credit unions will support Apple Pay after a deal between Apple and banking services provider Cuscal... More
Apple Pay promotes web payments with holiday deals
Apple is promoting the use of Apple Pay for web payments with a string of holiday offers from US retailers including Adidas, Casper, Grubhub and Instacart... More
UK government to invest in Fido authentication
The UK government is to invest in Fido authentication as part of its £1.9bn (US$2.3bn), five-year UK National Cyber Security Strategy, aimed at defending its online systems and infrastructure... More
French hotel and casino group to test biometric smart cards
French casino and hotel group Groupe Partouche has partnered with MeReal Biometrics to test the use of biometric smart cards by employees to access secure areas... More
Samsung to add AI button to new smartphone
Samsung is considering adding a dedicated button for an improved artificial intelligence feature for its next flagship smartphone, the Wall Street Journal reports... More
Nordic bank to use blockchain for money transfers
Nordic bank SEB has signed an agreement with distributed financial technology provider Ripple to use the company’s blockchain technology solution as a basis for payment transactions... More
Spanish bank offers ‘selfie’ service to open account
BBVA bank is offering new customers in Spain the chance to open an account with them using their mobile phone, with identity verified using face recognition and video calls... More
US bank app allows ability to dispute charges
Citi credit card owners can now dispute charges within the bank’s iPhone app in the US... More
Brain biometrics study gets $900,000 grant
Binghamton University in the US has been awarded US$900,000 to continue investigations into the next-generation of brain biometric technology... More
Poppy Appeal gets contactless donations
UK consumers can make a donation to The Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal by tapping their contactless card or NFC device against contactless donation tins in 13 branches of UK bank Natwest... More