NH NongHyup Bank, one of South Korea‘s five major banks, said Tuesday it has launched biometric boarding service via mobile applications for the first time as a financial institution here.

Customers who registered their palm vein patterns at the bank’s branches will be able to travel aboard a domestic flight through contactless biometric boarding process at Gimpo International Airport, Jeju International Airport and Gimhae Airport, the bank said. Up until now, registration of biometric information for boarding service was only possible at airports.

Accoridng to the bank, this is the first case in which biometric authentication service of financial sectors was applied to non-financial sectors. The service is expected to be extended to all domestic airports this year.

“This service, introduced by NH Nonghyup Bank and Korea Airports Corporation, will be a good example of creating cooperative synergy between different industries,” NH NongHyup Bank CEO Kwon Joon-hak said in a statement.

The bank’s biometric service using palm recognition technology, which can be registered by individuals aged over 19, was initially designed to streamline its authentication process for customers so that they can withdraw cash and issue balance certificates without presenting a bankbook and identity documents.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)