STRATEGIC PARTNERS
September 14, 1999
SUNNYVALE, Calif. -- Biometrics leader Identix Inc. has formed partnerships with several technology companies to furnish a smart card-based, biometrics ATM solution to Groupo Financiero Banorte in Mexico. Using ATMs supplied by ICL, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fujitsu, Financiero Banorte has installed CardStore, an electronic banking system that utilizes smart card to maintain payroll information. Fingerprint scanning provides security to users. The solution is targeted to the vast amount of Mexicans who have no bank accounts and taps into the foreign-owned factories called maquiladoras that have cropped up since the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was signed. The system helps unify the 4,000 workers participating in the program, their employers and the general merchants serving them nearby. More than $2.5 million have been dispense by the ATMs as a result of the pilot. Identicator Technology, Identix's IT security division, has partnered with NetLink Transactions Systems Corp. to integrate Identicator's Direct Fingerprint Reader hardware and software into the final solution. Replacing PIN numbers and passwords, the fingerprint is stored on the smart card, called MetaCard, preventing anyone else from successfully using it. Giesecke & Devrient America, based in Reston-Va., developed the multi-application MetaCard. MetaCard maintains reloadable payroll and stores retail coupons redeemable by employees at grocery stores. The card allows employees to retrieve cash at the end of a pay period after utilizing the card to enter time and attendance information for employers to document. Employees can use the same card at the factory's cafeteria and nearby retailers.
