DBS is working with Singapore's government to pilot the use of the SingPass face verification technology to sign up customers to digital banking services.
Managed by the Government Technology Agency of Singapore (GovTech), SingPass is national identity system that lets people on the island interact with government agencies and private firms online.
With Covid-19 accelerating take-up of digital banking, DBS is piloting the use of SingPass face verification technology as a way to simplify the online signup process. The bank estimates that there are more than one million DBS customers who are SingPass holders and do not use digital banking services, of which over 60% are seniors aged 62 and above.
Rather than using their cards and PINs for verification, DBS customers can register with a selfie which is matched against photo records from the government’s biometric database. Once verified, users receive an SMS and can set up their digital banking credentials.
“Amid one of the greatest disruptions ever witnessed in our time, we are more cognisant than ever about the importance of leveraging digital technology to quickly serve up solutions that benefit the wider public,” says Jeremy Soo, head, consumer banking group (Singapore), DBS.
DBS has already begun trialling the technology with 100 seniors and students, receiving positive feedback.
Says 66 year old Nancy Yeo: "I didn’t sign up for a digital banking account as I wasn’t confident about completing the process, but this new face verification option helped me erase any doubts."