Sumitomo Mitsui to release credit card with lock function

January 10, 2018

TOKYO- Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Card Co. has said it will start issuing this year what it claims is the world's first credit card that has a lock function to boost security.

A passcode will be required to activate the card, thereby increasing security substantially, said officials of the unit of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.

The passcode, which the user will decide on, will be entered with touch-screen numeric keys on the card itself. When the passcode is confirmed, the credit card's numbers will appear on a liquid crystal screen and magnetic stripes and integrated circuit chips will be activated.

The card will be deactivated once payment is completed.

The new device was jointly developed by Sumitomo Mitsui Card and US mobile payment platform developer Dynamics Inc. The specific date of the launch of the new card and annual fees will be decided later, the Japanese company said. Jiji Press