LONDON - A tech company is rolling out a microchip that can be implanted in people’s hands with the goal of making contactless payments easier.London-based Walletmor said the chip will work with the Purewrist app, a digital wallet.
After downloading the app, users will go to a specialist to have a chip installed in their hands that would act in conjunction with the app and businesses that use the app.
Once users are completely set up with the microchip and app, they can make payments using the funds in their accounts. The company said the implant process is safe.
The skin incision for the implant is very small and is usually 7 millimeters long, and the procedure takes about four minutes. RELATED: Swedish company showcases microchip that can download COVID-19 passport statusThe implant itself costs $299, according to the company’s website. "The implant can be used to pay for a drink on the beach in Rio, a coffee in New York, a haircut in Paris - or at your local grocery store," founder and chief executive Wojtek Paprota told the BBC. "It can be used wherever contactless payments are accepted."Contactless, or tap-to-pay, payment systems have long been popular outside the U.S.