ANZ introduces new technology to make banking safe

ANZ yesterday announced new initiatives to further improve the customer experience with the launch of the world’s safest automatic teller machine (ATM), and market-leading enhancements to its FastPay app that allows convenient and secure processing of credit or debit cards through mobile devices.

ANZ attributed that industry data shows counterfeit card fraud costs the industry around $25 million a year in Australia, with global losses estimated to exceed $1.4 billion. Working with ATM manufacturer NCR and Visa, ANZ will roll-out an EMV secure ‘Tap & PIN’ solution that reads card data without having to insert the card in the reader. ANZ will introduce the technology to its ATMs throughout 2015.

ANZ chief executive officer, Australia Philip Chronican said: "The growing dependence on technology means customers want simpler and faster ways to bank – but they also want to know their money is secure.

"Counterfeit card fraud is a massive issue for the industry and law enforcement that causes significant inconvenience for customers. ANZ’s ‘Tap & PIN’ solution is a global first and will go a long way in the fight against card skimmers and to make banking safer and easier," Mr Chronican said.

The ATM technology will in future also enable Near Field Communication (NFC) for authentication and pre-staging transactions at ATMs, using a mobile phone or other portable devices, allowing customers to pre-program their mobile device with the value and denomination for the cash they want to withdraw. ANZ also announced that it will launch an innovative EMV and PCI compliant card reader device for ANZ FastPay that connects through the audio-jack port in an iOS or Android device.