Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has officially joined the FIDO Alliance and is gearing up to implement passkey technology. According to Binance, by joining the FIDO Alliance, the company is looking to improve the security and convenience of its users.

In order to improve security, Binance wants to implement passkeys, which are based on FIDO standards and act as strong, phishing-resistant password replacements. Passkeys allow users to quickly and safely sign in across multiple sites, apps, and devices with local biometric authorisation. Passkeys will complement Binance’s existing security features, including multi-factor authentication (MFA) and multi-signature technology.

By becoming a member of the FIDO Alliance, Binance hopes to improve user trust and confidence in the platform by providing a streamlined and secure experience. What is the FIDO Alliance? The FIDO Alliance is an open industry association that focuses on new authentication standards that help reduce the world’s over-reliance on passwords. The FIDO Alliance promotes the development of, use of, and compliance with standards for authentication and device attestation.

According to FIDO, passwords are still popular even though there is a growing consensus that their use needs to be reduced, if not replaced. But even though effective PKI and strong authentication solutions have existed for years, barriers to widespread adoption are still in place. The FIDO Alliance is working to change the nature of authentication with open standards that are more secure than passwords and SMS OTPs.

These new solutions are easier for consumers to use and easier for service providers to deploy and manage. The FIDO Alliance aims to fulfil this mission by: Developing technical specifications that define an open, scalable, interoperable set of mechanisms that reduce the reliance on passwords to authenticate users.   Operating industry certification programs to help ensure successful worldwide adoption of the specifications.

  Submitting mature technical specifications to recognized standards development organizations for formal standardisation. Other developments from Binance In March 2023, Binance informed its users in the United Kingdom that it will suspend deposits and withdrawals due to an issue with Skrill Limited. Binance sent out an email to its UK-based users in which it informed them that they won't be able to use British pound sterling (GBP) in their accounts, both on and off ramps because Skrill Limited will no longer support it.

Skrill Limited is Binance’s UK-based partner bank that allows the company to use Faster Payments Service transactions. Binance has also decided to prevent new users from opening accounts with GBP deposits on the platform. In February 2023, Binance  partnered with France-based paytech Ingenico to enable in-store payments in France.

The partnership included the launch of a pilot programme that accepts more than 50 cryptocurrencies and is available only on Ingenico Axium payment terminals in France. The programme aims to make it easier for users to pay in-store using Binance Pay, and it will go live with Le Carlie and Miss Opéra. .