Face verification can soon be used to withdraw cash & check account balances at OCBC ATMs

No need for ATM cards anymore.

Zhangxin Zheng | March 18, 2021, 12:05 PM

OCBC Bank announced on Mar. 18 that users can check their account balances at eight of its ATMs around Singapore with face verification starting from March 19, 2021.

The introduction of facial biometrics for ATM services by the bank takes users a step closer to doing without ATM cards, which can be skimmed or stolen, OCBC said.

Face verification to withdraw cash and check account balances

Balance enquiry is just the first banking transaction that OCBC users can do with face verification. To use face verification, one selects the relevant ATM service and enters their NRIC number.

The user will then be prompted to position their face within a frame on the screen for a specially installed web-enabled camera to scan and verify their face.

Progressively, users can also use face verification to withdraw cash from all OCBC Bank ATMs in Singapore as well.

These two types of banking transactions make up close to eight in 10 of all ATM transactions performed by customers, OCBC said.

The first eight OCBC ATMs where face verification will be rolled out in March 2021 are:

  1. OCBC Tampines Centre Two
  2. Taman Jurong Shopping Centre
  3. Great Eastern, Pickering Street
  4. OCBC Tampines Centre One
  5. HDB Hub Level 1
  6. 103 Yishun Ring Road
  7. OCBC Campus
  8. Geylang Road 7-Eleven

To provide more convenience

OCBC Bank is the first to tap Singapore's National Digital Identity infrastructure, SingPass Face Verification, to securely verify users for banking transactions at ATMs without the need for ATM cards.

That means the user's face will be matched and verified against a national biometric database, which consists of the images and identities of 4 million Singapore residents.

Previously, OCBC introduced QR code cash withdrawals in July 2019.

Sunny Quek, OCBC Bank's Head of Consumer Financial Services Singapore, said that while cash is still the key mode of payment in Singapore, digital adoption has grown among OCBC users. The option to use face verification at ATMs provides an additional layer of convenience for OCBC users.

Next year, OCBC will also extend face verification option to other ATM transactions such as cash deposits, funds transfers to other banks, cashcard top-ups and credit card bill payments.

Top image via OCBC