Mexico City, Dec 5 (EFE).- A staggering 85% of consumers in Latin America prefer biometric authentication over traditional passwords for online transactions, according to research by Mastercard. In response, the company is set to launch Payment Passkey, a service designed to streamline secure online payments for shoppers in the region
Simplifying Payments with Biometric
The Payment Passkey will use device-based biometrics, such as fingerprints or facial scans, to replace traditional methods like one-time passwords (OTPs). The service, set to launch in January, is a partnership between Mastercard, the Brazilian platform Sympla, and Yuno, a payment orchestrator founded by Colombians Juan Pablo Ortega and Julián Núñez.
“Payment passkeys align perfectly with Yuno’s strategy to quickly adopt and implement innovations. Being the first orchestrator to deploy them with Mastercard demonstrates our commitment to market leadership. By simplifying authentication and reducing friction in the payment process, payment passkeys drive higher conversion rates, more satisfied customers, and a better payment experience for everyone,” said Juan Pablo Ortega, CEO of Yuno.
Enhanced Security for Online Transactions
Mastercard’s adoption of Payment Passkey aims to simplify e-commerce, enhance the consumer experience, and mitigate vulnerabilities to online scams like phishing, SIM swapping, and message interception, which have become increasingly common with OTPs.
This innovation is timely, given the region’s growing demand for e-commerce. According to the Latin America Ecommerce Forecast, the region’s retail sales are projected to reach $180 billion in 2024, signaling robust growth in the medium and long term.
“Mastercard is committed to building a payment experience where convenience and security coexist. Partnering with Sympla and Yuno marks a significant step forward in advancing payment authentication in the region,” said Silvana Hernández, executive vice president of Core Products for Mastercard Latin America and the Caribbean.
Tokenization Technology: Protecting Consumers
The Payment Passkey service employs tokenization technology to replace the primary account number (PAN) with a token, ensuring that “card information is not shared with third parties and is useless to fraudsters in the event of a data breach.”
This technology not only benefits consumers but also reduces abandoned shopping carts caused by difficulties during payment. It provides issuers, such as banks, with a secure method to authenticate cardholders and reduce fraud risks.
Biometric Authentication: A Regional Trend
Biometric technology is increasingly recognized as the safest method for authentication, with 90% of consumers globally expressing trust in it. Marina Teixeira, product manager at Sympla, highlighted the importance of the Mastercard Payment Passkey service, reiterating its “commitment to security” and solidifying Sympla as one of the most trusted and innovative platforms in the Brazilian market.
EFE collaborated with Mastercard to produce this content.