Toss (operating company Viva Republica) announced on the 2nd that the number of subscribers for 'Toss FacePay' has exceeded 400,000, along with plans for nationwide expansion by the end of the year. Toss held a press conference at the S.J. Kunsthalle in Gangnam, Seoul, and announced the official launch of FacePay. They introduced key technologies, pilot operation results, and future business strategies, and unveiled a new lineup of dedicated devices.
FacePay, which began pilot operations in March, has expanded to 20,000 merchants in Seoul within two months. As of August, the cumulative number of FacePay subscribers has surpassed 400,000, with a reuse rate of approximately 60% within a month. Toss plans to expand FacePay to 300,000 stores nationwide by the end of the year and to 1 million stores by 2026, aiming to establish a new standard for offline payments.
◇Payment completed in just '1 second' using facial recognition
The Toss FacePay facial recognition payment service allows customers to register their face and payment method in the Toss app in advance, enabling payments simply by looking at the device in-store. Without needing to pull out cash or cards or launch a mobile app, the device recognizes the face and provides a fast payment experience in just 1 second.
Choi Jun-ho, the technical product owner (TPO) leading the development of FacePay, noted, "The greatest strength of FacePay is that multiple security technologies operate simultaneously within the short duration of just 1 second during payment." He added, "We will enhance the process to smoothly integrate identity verification and age authentication, making the offline experience more streamlined."
TPO Choi emphasized that security is prioritized alongside convenience. FacePay employs multi-layered security technologies, including ▲'liveness' checks to confirm the presence of an actual person, ▲a 'facial recognition model' that is robust against facial changes and can precisely differentiate similar faces, and ▲a fraud detection system (FDS).
It is also the only facial recognition payment technology that has undergone a preliminary appropriateness review by the Personal Information Protection Commission. Toss has established measures with the commission to securely handle unique identification information and facial recognition data in accordance with the Personal Information Protection Act, and services are currently operating following compliance checks. Additionally, all data is encrypted and managed in a network-separated environment, and they have implemented a proactive compensation system in case of fraudulent transactions to enhance user trust.
◇Toss devices deployed nationwide support all easy payment options
Preparations for hardware for the expansion of FacePay are also complete. Toss's payment device and POS solution subsidiary, Toss Place, is responsible for device distribution. In addition to the existing main device, 'Toss Front,' two new devices, 'Toss Front View' and 'Toss Front Cam,' were unveiled at this event, expanding the lineup.
Toss Front is a universal device that supports all easy payment methods, including FacePay. Toss Front View supports FacePay by adding devices without replacing existing payment terminals, and Toss Front Cam can be attached to the top of kiosks to enable FacePay in existing environments. The various options tailored to store conditions are expected to underpin the rapid spread of FacePay across different sectors and stores.
Toss further enhances the payment experience by integrating Apps-in-Toss. Apps-in-Toss is an open platform in the app-in-app format, allowing users to implement online stores within the Toss app. Users can search for stores, make reservations, check benefits within Apps-in-Toss, and make payments in just 1 second using FacePay on-site. After payment, automatic rewards accumulation, coupon issuance, and rebooking follow.
O Kyu-in, the vice president overseeing Toss's easy payment business, stated, "FacePay is an important consolidation that transforms the entire offline journey beyond being just a payment method." He added, "By organically combining Toss Place, which distributes devices, Apps-in-Toss, which provides services for individual stores, and FacePay, we aim to unify users' offline payment experience."