Amid constant speculation about the use cases for biometric authentication, Stripe has agreed to handle payments operations for CLEAR.
CLEAR is best known for its membership program, CLEAR Plus, which leverages biometrics to expediate identity verification queues at airports. However, the company has since expanded its platform to offer biometric authentication solutions across industries such as healthcare and entertainment.
Through the integration with Stripe, CLEAR will gain support for a wide array of payments methods facilitated by the business payments processor, including digital wallets. In addition to one-time payments, the partnership is expected to streamline CLEAR’s subscription billing process.
A Deepening Partnership
CLEAR is collaborating with Stripe on several other ventures, including its CLEAR Mobile platform, which allows travelers who aren’t CLEAR Plus members to buy a one-time QR code for expedited airport security verification.
The biometrics company is also leaning on Stripe to handle card payments at its EnVe facial recognition pods, which were rolled out at airports like New York’s JFK last year. Additionally, Stripe will manage in-app enrollments for CLEAR Plus and oversee fraud mitigation efforts for the company.
Reusing Biometric Credentials
Without a doubt, biometric authentication has a strong use case in high-traffic areas like airports and stadiums. Consumers are more likely to enroll in biometrics programs if they believe it will help them skip long lines, while organizations benefit from an added layer of security.
However, there has been much speculation about when biometric authentication will become mainstream. So far, adoption in retail environments has lagged because merchants have been reluctant to invest in facial recognition equipment, and customers haven’t seen the benefit of enrolling in biometrics programs at every store they visit.
Reusable biometric credentials could change this dynamic, allow customers to use the same credential they use at the airport to make purchases at retailers. This kind of interoperability would be far more appealing to consumers and could significantly drive broader adoption of biometrics.
