Now Investec reaches out to Touch ID

Hard on the heels of Standard Bank announcing integration of Touch ID in its banking app, Investec has also embraced the Apple biometric solution.

Following the introduction of voice biometrics to its Global Client Support Centre, a first for a financial institution in South Africa, Investec is introducing yet another digital innovation: a secure authentication method for its app, called Touch ID.

Investec is the second bank in South Africa to embrace Touch ID, following hard on the heels of Standard Bank.

Designed and released by Apple, Touch ID is a fingerprint recognition feature currently available on the iPhone 5S, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Investec clients with an iPhone device will now be able to use Touch ID to log into their Investec App with a single, secure touch, as an alternative to their Investec Online password. They will get quick and secure access to their South African and United Kingdom banking and investment accounts, without compromising on security.

Touch ID supports Investec’s One Place strategy, which sees us offering our clients access to local and international banking and investments, through the channel of their choice,” says Investec’s Global head of Digital, Lyndon Subroyen. “By introducing additional digital innovations such as Touch ID, we enable our clients, who are busy global citizens, to save time, while reducing the potential for fraud.

Subroyen said the response from clients in South Africa and the United Kingdom to the introduction of voice biometrics had been positive and Investec is expecting Touch ID to be equally popular. “Although biometrics has been around for some time, the technology has finally reached a level of development that satisfies the requirements of the global security community. The combination of security and convenience makes it ideal for banking applications and our clients will reap the benefits,” Subroyen concludes.

Investec will continue its focus on digital innovation, with a number of initiatives in the pipeline.

* Follow Gadget on Twitter on @GadgetZA