The real paranoid types can relate to that slight worry you feel when inserting your bank card into an ATM. Is it being skimmed? Will it come out? Who is watching me? To aid with (most of) these questions, FNB is implementing a contactless ‘tap’ system to their ATMs.
Many have kicked against the growing rollout of tap-to-pay systems, claiming that the systems are fairly insecure but happily FNB’s ATMs will still require a PIN after tapping. FNB says this will save about 20 seconds of transaction time. And will offer more than a little peace-of-mind.
The system is said to be completely secure, and will play a role in weeding out skimmers. Contactless technology can give users protection against card skimming devices by not requiring card insertion for a withdrawal. Win! (And also an extra win for the OCD users out there).
“Contactless payments offer substantial benefits in an era where consumers and retailers want to avoid long queues. From an FNB point of view, we are creating an enabling ecosystem for retailers to match consumer appetite by improving the contactless acceptance footprint in the Retail environment,” says Raj Makanjee, the CEO of FNB Retail (left).
With the rise of other banks in South Africa, the traditional players will have to adapt, and quickly. We’ll see Discovery Bank and Bank Zero launch in 2019, with Tymebank already opening accounts for people. When it comes to adapting with new tech, FNB gets it. We’ve seen them integrate with Fitbit Pay, Garmin Pay, and likely soon with Samsung and Apple Pay.
The ‘Tap and PIN’ functionality is currently available across 100 FNB ATMs and the bank is planning to roll out even more throughout 2019.
