Payment firm Block plans to include a fingerprint sensor in its upcoming crypto wallet design, according to a product update released Friday.
Block first announced his plans to build a hardware wallet in July of last year. At the time, the company said the wallet would offer multi-signature transactions, which require two or more private keys to sign and send the transaction.
In October, Block released the first of his update posts, which would provide insights into the development of the product. In that message, it said it was building a combination of hardware product and mobile application. The idea is that customers will mainly use the app and use the hardware in combination with the app for larger transfers.
Today, the company released an additional update message, sharing that the wallet’s hardware would include a fingerprint sensor as an alternative to passwords and seed phrases.
“For transactions that involve using the wallet hardware, we want our customers to be able to unlock their wallets securely, but with ease — an unlikely combination that hasn’t existed on the market in the past,” the post said. “We believe that PINs, passwords and seed phrases are confusing and often not secure, given the workarounds normal people have to make given all the friction.”
As a result, the wallet will not have a display, as users will have “the convenience of placing a finger on the sensor rather than manipulating small, interference-prone buttons on a hard-to-read screen,” as the update puts it. Instead, customers will use the mobile app for input. Block said it plans to share more about the screenless experience in a future post.
Still, the company said it is aware that some users may want more than a fingerprint sandwiched between a transfer. As Block builds the wallet, it says it will evaluate additional access methods for customers to choose.
The wallet is also powered by a rechargeable lithium polymer battery with a USB-C port charger.