Resona forms 31-firm consortium on facial recognition payment system

Banking group Resona Holdings Inc. on Thursday established a consortium of 31 Japanese companies across a range of industries to discuss and share know-how on the development of a payment system using facial recognition technology. The bank unveiled the plan for the payment system in August, aiming to allow users to make deposits and withdrawals at banks and shop at stores without presenting anything if they register their facial images in advance, with hopes of creating a standard that can ultimately be utilized in different settings. The joint project is also headed by Panasonic System Solutions Japan Co., a unit of electronics giant Panasonic Corp. which has expertise in facial recognition technology, credit card firm JCB Co. and Dai Nippon Printing Co. The newly announced consortium includes West Japan Railway Co., Seven & i Holdings Co. and Hankyu Hanshin Holdings Inc., among other companies. The facial recognition technology requires customers to register a picture of their face through a website and other personal data.