Visa has teamed up with tech conglomerate Tencent to launch a palm recognition system for digital payments in international markets.

Tencent Palm was showcased at the Singapore FinTech Festival (SFF), where attendees could try out the Pay by Palm solution at both Tencent and Visa booths.

The service will be rolled out for the first time as a pilot programme in Singapore. Visa cardholders from participating banks, including DBS, OCBD and UOB, will be able to pay by palm at Singapore's Alchemist café.

Tencent Palm features a two-step process that verifies both palm prints and unique patterns of veins under the skin, ensuring highly accurate readings. In addition, user data is encrypted to be stored irreversibly, preventing decryption, theft or reuse by third parties, Tencent said in a statement.

Users taking part in the pilot programme will have to sign up at the merchant's point of sale, where they will be invited to tap their Visa card, scan their palm, and complete a one-time authentication to enrol. After that, they will be able to use their palm to complete payments.

Tencent added it aims to provide complementary services, such as technical support to customers in various industries through its wholly owned subsidiary in Singapore, Tencent SenseTech Pte. Ltd.

The tech specialist added it is open to collaboration with customers and partners in various industries to further explore the service application in different use cases.

Visa said the pilot programme aims to expand Tencent’s palm recognition technology to new locations soon.

During a presentation at SFF, Yang Wenhui, general manager of Tencent Financial Technology Asia Pacific, said that Tencent's palm recognition technology introduces improvements in both user experience and technology application, as well as data security and privacy compliance.

Adeline Kim, Visa's country manager for Singapore and Brunei, emphasized Visa's commitment to simplifying the payment process for customers.

“Our goal is to improve the payment experience and ensure seamless transactions for our customers with the highest level of security,” continued Kim. “Together with Tencent, we are excited to be at the forefront of transforming the future of payments.”

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