By Tom Phillips

Customers of Eastern Bank (EBL) in Bangladesh will soon be able to apply for a metal biometric payment card that will enable them to authenticate contactless payments at the point of sale with their fingerprint.

The bank is to roll out the world’s first biometric card made out of metal in order to offer “a secure and hassle-free payment experience for the cardholders” and follows its introduction of NFC wearable payments to Bangladesh in September.

“We are excited to introduce biometric metal cards to our customers complying with all regulatory requirements in Bangladesh and first to offer this latest technology to our customers, confirming our leadership and innovation positioning,” EBL’s Ali Reza Iftekhar says.

 “We believe biometric payment cards will become the new payment standard, supporting secure contactless payments, and ultimately bringing financial empowerment to all.”

The bank’s wearable payments solution — known as Weareble — enables users to link their card account to an NFC payments ring, phone grip, phone holder, wristband or fob sleeve and then use the device to make in-store contactless payments “at a vast network of merchants globally”.

“Customers will have the biometric metal cards in their hands by early 2024,” EBL says.