The German company Giesecke+Devrient (G+D) has introduced a token-based system for secure offline payments.
G+D Filia Unplugged promises sequential, secure offline payment transactions anytime, anywhere with the benefits of cash, including privacy and high data security.
The company says its technology can be seamlessly integrated into existing digital payment offerings, including tokenized deposit systems from commercial banks, instant payment systems or mobile money services.
Filia Unplugged increases the resilience of digital payments that can be affected by connectivity issues due to power outages, weak internet signals or telecommunications outages.
Additionally, G+D argues that it can promote financial inclusion for nearly 1.4 billion unbanked people worldwide by offering a new payment method that allows people to conduct digital transactions without the need for expensive devices such as smartphones.
The feature enables P2P and P2B payments, says G+D, adding that central banks are also making offline a crucial part of digital currency work.
The technology stores monetary tokens on a hardware wallet (e.g. the SIM card of a smartphone or a smart card) and only requires two wallets to operate, which can then be used without an online connection, for example via NFC.
Raoul Herborg, MD, CBDC, G+D, says: “The ability to pay offline in an existing digital system can improve financial inclusion and payment stability, support cash-like functions in the digital world and drive innovative use cases for tokenized Business.”