From October 1, opening bank cards and online e-wallets requires biometric authentication

Circular 18/2024/TT-NHNN (Circular 18) regulating bank card activities takes effect from July 1, but some regulations will take effect from October 1; including regulations on card issuance procedures (Article 9) and regulations on card issuance by electronic means (Article 10).

Accordingly, card issuers must collect documents, information, and data to identify customers and cardholder biometric information for individual customers, and biometric information of legal representatives for organizational customers;

The card issuer must conduct a comparison to ensure the correct match between the biometric information of the cardholder (for individual customers) or legal representative (for corporate customers) with the biometric data stored in the encrypted information storage of the citizen identification card or identification card; or match with the biometric data that has been collected and checked.

The card issuing organization stores and preserves fully and in detail over time the information and data identifying customers during the process of card issuance and use by customers, such as: customer identification information; customer biometric factors; sounds, images, video recordings, audio recordings; transaction phone numbers; transaction logs.

According to regulations, information and data must be stored safely, securely, backed up, ensuring the completeness and integrity of the data to serve the work of inspection, comparison, settlement of inquiries, complaints, disputes and provision of information upon request from competent state management agencies.

The storage period is implemented according to the provisions of the law on anti-money laundering.

Similar regulations also apply to customers who register to open an e-wallet by electronic means according to the provisions of Circular 40 of 2024 regulating the provision of intermediary payment services.

Accordingly, e-wallet providers must collect, check and verify biometric information of e-wallet owners for individual customers and of legal representatives for institutional customers.

Previously, from July 1, according to Decision No. 2345 of the State Bank, people who want to make money transfer transactions of 10 million VND or more or total daily transactions of over 20 million VND are required to have facial biometric authentication.