India to roll out biometric authentication for instant digital payments from Wednesday, sources say

By Jaspreet Kalra and Ashwin Manikandan

MUMBAI (Reuters) -India will allow users to approve payments made through popular domestic payments network, the Unified Payments Interface, using facial recognition and fingerprints starting October 8, three sources directly familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

Authentications will be done using biometric data stored under the Government of India’s unique identification system – Aadhar, one of the sources said.

The move follows recent guidelines from the Reserve Bank of India permitting alternative methods of authentication and will mark a departure from the current system, which requires a numeric PIN for payment authentication.

The National Payments Corporation of India, which operates UPI, plans to showcase this new biometric feature at the ongoing Global Fintech Festival in Mumbai, the sources said on condition of anonymity as they are not authorised to speak to the media.

NPCI did not immediately respond to a Reuters’ request for comment.

(Reporting by Jaspreet Kalra and Ashwin Manikandan; Editing by Sumana Nandy)