Airtel Payments Bank partners NPCI to roll out face authentication for AePS

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Airtel Payments Bank on Tuesday said it has collaborated with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to roll out face authentication for the Aadhaar-enabled Payment System at its 5 lakh banking points.

Airtel Payments Bank is among the first four banks to offer face authentication for AePS (Aadhaar-enabled Payment System).

"We are delighted to collaborate with NPCI to offer this new facility to our valuable customers. Face authentication is an important addition to our existing bouquet of secure and simple banking solutions to drive financial and digital inclusion in the country," Airtel Payments Bank COO Ganesh Ananthanarayanan said in a statement.

NPCI's AePS allows customers to carry out financial and non-financial transactions at any banking point using their Aadhaar number or virtual ID to access their Aadhaar-linked bank account.

Until now, transactions were being authenticated using the customer's Aadhaar number and fingerprint or Iris match in the UIDAI records.

The new facility will enable customers to validate the transaction by undertaking face authentication along with the Aadhaar number.

The authentication is processed using the Face Authentication RD Application by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).

"It is delightful to see Airtel Payment Bank implementing this feature for AePS transactions, which will enhance the reach of Aadhaar-based transactions across the country," NPCI Chief Operating Officer Praveena Rai said.

In the first phase, Airtel Payment Bank will make the facility available for non-financial transactions, balance enquiry and mini-statements.

"As per the guidance from NPCI, Airtel Payments Bank will enable the functionality for other bank customers and the Bank's customers at other banking outlets," the statement said.