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Citigroup Plans Thumbprint ATMs For India's Poor

Posted by kdawson on from the beware-of-gummi-bears dept.

Brad Lucier points out a Financial Times report (carried by MSN Money) that Citigroup is rolling out a network of biometric ATMs aimed at illiterate Indian slum dwellers. From the article: "The machines will recognize account holders' thumbprints, eliminating the need for a personal identification number, and will have color-coded screen instructions and voiceovers to help guide them through transactions... Though India's population exceeds 1 billion, Citigroup estimates that there are only about 300 million bank accounts in the country... 'It's not a philanthropic exercise,' [PS Jayakumar, a Citigroup business manager in India] said. 'For it to be sustainable, we should break even and make a little bit of money.'"

5 of 123 comments (clear)

  1. The plot thickens... by viner! · · Score: 1, Interesting

    http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-431273027 7175242198&q=freedom+fascism

  2. or: "Test on low exposure customers"... by gjuk · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Citigroup has a target of 50,000 slum-dwelling customers. That means the total deposits might be $100 * 50,000 = $5million. Assuming Citigroup makes 5% on this, it's $250,000 profit opportunity. This barely justifies 25 ATMs and the effort to get these people banking. The reality is that Citigroup is trialling (a) biometrics and (b) low income banking. They are separate trials.. Slashdot readers all know that fingerprint reading has not yet reached the point we'd trust our own bank accounts to it. Citigroup know this too - they are using people with little to lose to carry out large scale experiments. If someone gets 'hacked'- it'll cost $100 to reimburse them. Tops. Much better there than here... Low income banking; China and India account for 1/4 - 1/3 of the world's population - and they are currently not very wealthy. Still, make a margin and there's a good volume. What's more - over time, they may become wealthy and it'd be nice to 'own' these economies...

    1. Re:or: "Test on low exposure customers"... by baffled · · Score: 2, Interesting

      According to NIST http://www.epic.org/privacy/biometrics 98.6% accuracy can be achieved with one fingerprint, 99.6% with two, and 99.9% with four or more fingers. Wonder how many fingers they're working with.

  3. It's India and they're poor! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    If they are poor, then they won't have any money to withdraw from the ATM.
    That's unless the Banks etc., start to give them credit/loans.
    Seems like the carrot and stick method for a new market, take loans/credit out with us and we'll make Billions.
    I see lots of people going bankrupt in India in the future.

  4. Re:Hm by XchristX · · Score: 2, Interesting

    The characterization is still one-sided, since all Indians don't amputate beggars, only a segment of the population. Your statement was categorical, not qualified, and, I suspect, more motivated by resentment at the success of the Indian American community (highest median personal income and family income, as well as highest percentage of advanced degrees among minorities of Asian extraction: http://www.asian-nation.org/demographics.shtml) than any genuine concern for the plight of the beggars in India. By the way, the situation of poverty, which breeds such things, has been steadily improving in India since the 70s: ( http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/48/BPL_ Data_GOI_.png based on http://mospi.nic.in/mospi_cso_rept_pubn.htm), something that you won't see touted by the Times of India op/ed morons, leftist pundits, and bloggers who don't know any better, or lack broad perspective.

    --
    l'Homme n'est Rien l'Oeuvre Tout: Gustave Flaubert to George Sand