Ant Group to sell US-based biometric security firm EyeVerify, report says

EyeVerify, a biometric security firm, uses its eye recognition technology to replace passwords for banking applications and mobile payments.

Ant Group is allegedly in talks with multiple companies regarding the sale of EyeVerify, the report stated, citing two sources familiar with the matter. The potential sale is expected to go through within the first half of this year.

Ant Group declined to comment to Tech in Asia on the matter.

The move comes after the fintech giant is said to be looking to raise funds in preparation for potential fines and restructuring costs following its halted IPO last year, said the report.

EyeVerify was acquired by Ant Group in 2016 for US$100 million, marking the firm’s first investment in the US. Its technology is used by US banks including Wells Fargo.

See also: Is Ant Group a real threat to Western payment duopoly Visa, Mastercard?

Recently, the US government banned Americans from transacting with eight Chinese software apps including Ant Group’s Alipay over national security concerns.

However, a senior Ant executive said that the company has not collected data from EyeVerify’s scans, according to the report. The exec added that the data did not leave the smartphones that had performed the scans, ruling out data access for both EyeVerify and Ant.