The banking and payments industry continues to be a hotbed of innovation owing to ever changing consumer expectations. The rapid technological developments in the areas of banking and payments that aim to offer seamless experience to consumers are now becoming even more vital for industry participants as competitors leverage new technologies such as artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, cybersecurity, and embedded finance as they compete to stay relevant and grow in the market. In the last three years alone, there have been over 92,000 patents filed and granted in the banking industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Internet of Things in Banking: contactless card scanners.
However, not all innovations are equal and nor do they follow a constant upward trend. Instead, their evolution takes the form of an S-shaped curve that reflects their typical lifecycle from early emergence to accelerating adoption, before finally stabilising and reaching maturity.
Identifying where a particular innovation is on this journey, especially those that are in the emerging and accelerating stages, is essential for understanding their current level of adoption and the likely future trajectory and impact they will have.
60+ innovations will shape the banking industry
According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which plots the S-curve for the banking industry using innovation intensity models built on over 195,000 patents, there are 60+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Automated toll payments, payment actuated vending, and contactless card scanners are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas are near field communication (NFC) payments and contactless payments, which are now well established in the industry.
Innovation S-curve for Internet of Things in the banking industry
Contactless card scanners is a key innovation area in Internet of Things
A contactless card scanner is an electronic device that uses near field communication (NFC) and radio frequency identification (RFID) technologies to accept payments from contactless card customers. The scanner reads the customer’s card information when the card is tapped or hovered over the device, thereby increasing the speed of the payment.
GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 10+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established banking companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of contactless card scanners.
Key players in contactless card scanners– a disruptive innovation in the banking industry
‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent and broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.
‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in and reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.
Patent volumes related to contactless card scanners
| Company | Total patents (2010 - 2021) | Premium intelligence on the world's largest companies |
| Dynamics | 97 | Unlock company profile |
| Digimarc | 73 | Unlock company profile |
| DeviceFidelity | 71 | Unlock company profile |
| Alphabet | 64 | Unlock company profile |
| Angel Playing Cards | 62 | Unlock company profile |
| Neology | 49 | Unlock company profile |
| Memjet Technology | 38 | Unlock company profile |
| Jj Mackay Canada | 36 | Unlock company profile |
| Zamtec | 23 | Unlock company profile |
| Tyfone | 18 | Unlock company profile |
| Veritec | 9 | Unlock company profile |
| Honeywell International | 8 | Unlock company profile |
| LG | 8 | Unlock company profile |
| NIKE | 6 | Unlock company profile |
| JD.com | 5 | Unlock company profile |
| Stryker | 5 | Unlock company profile |
| AT&T | 5 | Unlock company profile |
| RYNAN TECHNOLOGIES | 5 | Unlock company profile |
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
Dynamics, Digimarc, DeviceFidelity, Alphabet, and Angel Playing Cards are some of the leading patent filers in contactless card scanners. Several patents have been filed in this space related to contactless access tickets, proximity transaction methods, collision detection and avoidance, card reader terminals systems, contactless EMV cards, and contactless electronic payment card readers, among others.
In terms of application diversity, Alphabet leads the pack. Zamtec and Memjet Technology stand in second and third positions, respectively. By means of geographic reach, Veritec holds the top position, followed by Angel Playing Cards and Honeywell.
To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the banking industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Internet of Things (IoT) in Banking.
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GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.
GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
