PROVO, Utah -- Combos convenience stores in Provo and Spanish Fork, Utah, are allowing customers to pay for goods with the touch of their finger, using technology from biometric payments firm BioPay LLC.
The service has been in place since February, and it is the first of its kind in any retail store in Utah, the tech company said.
Combos chose to implement BioPay to give their checkwriting and card-carrying customers greater convenience when making a purchase. An important benefit has been a reduction in Combos' payment processing [image-nocss] costs.
Many people are intrigued by BioPay and have begun using it in place of their debit cards, said David Wiscombe, manager for Provo-based Combos. BioPay transactions cost us 75% less than processing debit card transactions.
BioPay uses a person's unique finger image and their chosen PIN (typically their phone number) to authorize a debit from their checking account.
Enrollment can be completed at any merchant that offers the biometric payment service. The entire process takes less than two minutes, said the company. Once enrolled, the customer can pay with their finger at any other BioPay payments location across the United States.
Combos installed BioPay in February 2005, and the stores have processed more than 1,000 biometric payments in slightly more than two months. Customer enrollments have increased by 30% per month in the latest month, the retailer said.
BioPay has been so successful that we no longer take traditional paper checks, said Wiscombe. If people want to pay by check, we require them to enroll in BioPay. We've had no complaints and customers seem to really like the system.
Combos purchased its biometric payments offering through Identity Protection Systems, an authorized agent of BioPay. With this installation, Combos joins more than 1,000 grocers, c-stores and liquor stores from around the country that are using BioPay's biometric solutions to confidently know their customers for check cashing, loyalty programs, payments and more, BioPay said.
Combos has been a privately-held business for more than 10 years.
Herndon, Va.-based BioPay said it launched its services in the first c-store in the world using biometric payments on November 2003 for Rich Gladu, a three-store entrepreneur in Northern Virginia, the franchise owner of Amoco, BP and Liberty stations and stores.
Merchants are using one or more of BioPay's smart, secure methods for processing financial and other transactions requiring identification such as loyalty programs, age verification or stored value programs. BioPay's payment service offers merchants a low-cost form of payment and gives consumers a convenient, secure and quick way to pay for purchases. BioPay Paycheck Secure systems give consumers a convenient method for cashing payroll checks and help businesses substantially reduce fraud. BioPay's patent-pending systems are targeted to grocers, c-stores, gas stations, liquor stores and other retailers.
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