Singapore banks and fintechs leaders in biometrics adoption

The study “Leaders in Financial Services are Experts in Customer Identity” shows that 79% of Singapore banks and fintech companies plan to increase their spending on digital customer experience in the next 12 months, and 91% report that improving their ability to innovate is their top priority during that time.

Fingerprint authentication has been adopted or is being adopted by 61% of Singapore financials, while 57% of those in China, half of those in Australia, 40% in the UK, and only 37% in the US have done or are doing so. In voice recognition, Singapore’s 56% adoption rate leads Australia (52%), China and the US (49% each), and the UK (33%).

Despite the country’s lead in biometric adoption, 89% of financial companies in Singapore are concerned about their ability to identify customers, due largely to limitations of comprehensive data management, and poor integration of business applications and technology platforms. While only 41% of Singapore companies strongly agree that they have the necessary people and skills to execute their customer-centric strategy, all other countries included in the survey express less confidence.

Financial companies in Singapore are required to use two-factor authentication, which is one possible reason for the popularity of biometrics among them. Singapore is also second to China in using social media and behavioural monitoring to authenticate customers.