Biometric card pioneer Zwipe is shifting its focus from payments to instead target the access control market after seeing disappointing market adoption of biometric payment cards. 

“As a result of the change in strategic focus, the company has initiated a restructuring process that is expected to reduce operational costs, particularly related to Zwipe Pay,” says the company.

Zwipe has historically focused primarily on the development and application of its biometric authentication technology in the payments market.

“Over the last two years, Zwipe completed the development of Zwipe Pay including mobile enrollment solutions, achieved full certification of the technology by both Visa and Mastercard, and spent significant time lining up the biometric payment card value chain players to launch quickly once banks decided to move forward with biometric payment cards,” explains Zwipe.

“However, neither market adoption nor the pace of commercial launches has materialized in the manner Zwipe or other players had expected, particularly towards the end of 2023.”

The company will continue to serve and fulfill orders from existing Zwipe Pay customers, and on a net basis five Zwipe Pay staff are expected to leave, while headcount will grow slightly in the Zwipe Access sales team. 

• Video now available in the NFCW Knowledge Centre: Linxens’ Thomas Decker reports to Contactless World Congress on the state of play and outlook for next-generation contactless cards, including biometric cards, display cards, dynamic CVVs, sustainable substrates, and more.

Next: Visit the NFCW Expo to find new suppliers and solutions