BBVA testing ‘invisible payments’ technology

BBVA, the multi-national Spanish banking group, has announced that it is using its employees to test facial recognition technology at a cafeteria located in the Group’s Madrid headquarters. The biometric facial recognition system is based on technology from the start-up Veridas, a joint venture of BBVA and technology company Das-Nano in 2017. More than 1,000 of the bank’s employees are already using an order-ahead app which can be used to automate payments in Ciudad BBVA. This new payment system is part of BBVA’s strategy to lead the development of “invisible” or frictionless payments in order to transform customers’ purchase experience in stores. The app has been designed along with Sodexo Iberia, the Group’s restaurant partner, and forms part of a pioneer project to bring new payment experiences to the hospitality industry, and later to other retailers. “With this project, we’re eliminating the friction points for customers when they make a purchase in a store. They avoid lines, and have a more digital experience,” BBVA’s Head of Global Payments Ignacio Bañón said. “We call it the ‘zero click’ payment, the customer just has to open the app and their favourite order will already be set, which they can pick up and take away without even having to take out their cell phone again,” he added. The next step of the project is to bring invisible payments to self-service restaurants, where users pick up products themselves and take them to the table on trays. The system uses machine learning algorithms through which the machines ‘learn’ to identify both the faces of users and products on the tray in order to make the correct charge on their card. With around 7,000 employees, and more than six points of sale in different formats (restaurants, cafeterias, etc.), Ciudad BBVA represents an ideal test platform for exploring new forms of payment. “We are very happy to be working with BBVA on this innovative project. For Sodexo, a company dedicated to improving quality of life through our services, it’s enormously interesting to have access to payment solutions that contribute to optimising customers’ experience,” said Sodexo Iberia president, Carina Cabezas.