This is something we only see in movies…
When Patrick Paumen pays for something in a store or restaurant, he always causes a stir.
This is due to the fact that the 37-year-old does not need to pay using a credit card or his phone. He merely places his left hand near the contactless card reader, and the transaction is completed.
Photo via BBC
Mr. Paumen, a security guard from the Netherlands, says, "The reactions I receive from cashiers are wonderful!"
He can pay with his hand because he got a contactless payment microchip implanted under his skin in 2019.
Mr. Paumen explains, "The treatment hurts as much as when someone pinches your skin."
According to BBC, Walletmor, a British-Polish company, claims to have been the first to sell them last year.
"You may use the implant to pay for a drink on the beach in Rio, a coffee in New York, a haircut in Paris - or your local grocery store," says Wojtek Paprota, the company's creator and CEO. "It can be used anywhere that accepts contactless payments."
Photo via BBC
A tiny microchip and an antenna are enclosed in a biopolymer - a naturally derived material comparable to plastic - in Walletmor's chip, which weighs less than a gram and is about the size of a grain of rice.
Mr. Paprota goes on to say that it is completely safe, that it has received regulatory approval, that it works instantly after being implanted, and that it will remain firmly in place. It also doesn't require the use of a battery or any other form of power.
According to the company, more than 500 chips have been sold.
So it works exactly like paywave, but with your hand! How weird!
By: Aishah Akashah Ahadiat
