The Spanish technology company, FacePhi, has reached a new milestone in Asia for its identity verification systems by means of facial recognition. The firm, a global benchmark in biometric solutions for large companies, has developed the first 100% digital onboarding program for KB Securities. KB Securities is a subsidiary of KB Financial Group, one of the largest Korean financial services conglomerates and now the first financial group in this country to embrace this technology.
The company integrates its facial recognition system and optical character reading in the mobile application (M-able) of the Korean entity, making it possible to open a bank account with no more than a client’s selfie and a photo of his/her identity document. The SelphID technology will be in charge of comparing the images and authenticating the new client, allowing them to contract banking products remotely and with all guarantees of security and privacy.
The adoption of this onboarding procedure represents an unprecedented step forward for Korean banking, which so far required the opening of new accounts to be done in person or by videoconference at pre-established customer service hours. The alliance between KB Financial Group and FacePhi represents a major development for the country’s financial sector. This is endorsed by the regulators themselves, who have approved this access system with facial recognition for its high security and full compatibility with data privacy.
“Korea is the most advanced country in the world in the development and use of technologies such as blockchain, machine learning or identity verification through biometrics. If we add to this that its legislation is very demanding in terms of regulating technological aspects in the banking sector, we find that the introduction of our digital onboarding system has constituted a turning point”, explains Javier Mira, CEO of FacePhi. “We are very satisfied with this new project, both because it boosts our expansion in Asia and because it demonstrates that a Spanish company is selected in a country where some of the most powerful technology firms in the world are located”, highlights the CEO.
KB Securities, with a turnover of $ 7.5 billion and with nearly 2,800 employees, provides digital banking services to hundreds of thousands of clients through the M-able application. According to data provided by the company, this financial services app was used last April by more than 520,000 users, who since the end of August, have also used the SelphID biometric security system, developed by FacePhi, to open and access their bank account.
“Using facial recognition to open a new bank account is very useful in a society like Korea, where most customers only use digital banking services. In addition, facilitating this operation at any time of the day is the most practical option for people who travel constantly, for managers who have very little time and for the elderly as it provides user-friendliness with all the security guarantees”, concludes the CEO of FacePhi.
Kim Myeong Seop, KB Securities’ Managing Director and Javier Mira, FacePhi’s CEO
