Submission + - Citigroup plans thumbprint ATMs for India's poor
Brad Lucier writes: "The Financial Times (through MSN Money) reports that "Citigroup is rolling out a network of biometric automatic cash machines aimed at illiterate Indian slum dwellers. ... The machines will recognise account holders' thumbprints, eliminating the need for a personal identification number, and will have colour-coded screen instructions and voiceovers to help guide them through transactions." Citigroup recognizes that it can make money bringing banking to more people; from the article:
""Though India's population exceeds 1bn, Citigroup estimates that there are only about 300m bank accounts in the country.... "It's not a philanthropic exercise," [PS Jayakumar, a Citigroup business manager in India] said. "For it to be sustainable, we should break even and make a little bit of money."