Cash, cards and... selfies? How PayByFace is changing the game
As startups go, PayByFace is very much in its infancy, but in the four months since its inception, it has already garnered a notable amount of attention. Business Chief finds out more.
Can’t find your phone? Left your wallet at home? The startup PayByFace does what it says on the tin. Through the use of facial recognition, customers using the platform can now make payments with their face. These are indeed exciting times.
The last decade has seen technology evolve at a whiplash speed. With smartphones becoming commonplace in the early 2010s, through to the surge of the digital-only unicorn banks from 2015 onwards; payments remains one of the fastest evolving industries today.
“We’re thrilled to bring a twist to the digital payment space,” said Founder & CEO Mihai Draghici. “We’ve simplified how consumers can pay for their favorite goods and services without their phones or wallets. PayByFace is much more secure but relevant during a time when most people are searching for ways to untether themselves from a mobile device in the event they forget their phone at home or just want to actively be more present in their day-to-day.”
PayByFace is among many fintechs in the race to commodify biometrics in the payments industry, joining the likes of Alipay’s “Smile-To-Pay”, Tencent’s “Frog Pro” and a number of other companies featuring in our top 10. Yet the concern around cybersecurity and data governance remains at the forefront for merchants and customers alike.
To meet these challenges head-on, PayByFace announced that it has implemented PAS 499 Certified Biometric Onboarding in a partnership with Facebanx.com’s unique IDauth.me. This live streaming technology enables the verification of customers while preventing fraudulent transactions. To support this continual growth is Nicola Coscione, one of the senior advisors on the board.
“I am more than honored to join the PayByFace Advisory Board, providing support for their work transforming the future of payment services. I look forward to working with the team to help PayByFace break into worldwide markets, including the world of motorsport that I have been involved in throughout my career. This is only the start line for PayByFace, and I am excited to be alongside their journey of innovation,” said Coscione.
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Who is PayByFace?
PayByFace was cofounded in October 2019, by Mihai Draghici and Shefket Robelli in a drive to improve the efficiency of payments and create a seamless shopping experience.
PayByFace is headquartered in Bucharest Romania for its engineering, management and support; and Zurich, Switzerland for its sales, marketing and customer service.
Did you know? The first usage of facial recognition dates back to the 1960s, as pioneer and ‘father of facial recognition’, Woodrow Wilson Bledsoe, used the RAND tablet to track face shape with horizontal and vertical lines.
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