Now, pay using your fingerprints instead of debit or credit cards

An average user carries dozens of credit or debit cards with him or her. However, if a new system called PayTango gets accepted, you will just need your fingers to pay for any transaction. Designed to replace credit card terminals at retail stores, the startup founded by four Carnegie Mellon University students, and backed by YC Combinator, PayTango links cards to your fingerprints.

Here is how it works. A customer simply places his index and middle finger on the biometric scanner on the PayTango terminal which is linked to a merchant's point of sales system. If the user is registered in PayTango, the system recognizes the fingerprint, and completes the transaction. PayTango says that any card with a magnetic stripe can be registered.

If a customer is new, they can register themselves at the terminal. For registration, the customer slides the card they want linked to the account, and enters a cellphone number to complete the registration process. During first time registration, the user also has to verify that he is the person that he is claiming to be with a valid ID.

The system is already being used at Carnegie Mellon, and the founders want to first test this service in environments like college campuses or gyms.

If successful, PayTango can solve the hassle of carrying multiple cards. You could just walk out of your home, and pay for a transaction without carrying anything.

In India, the UID led by Nandan Nilekani has already captured biometric information for many Indians. Can a similar system be used to transform the payments scenario in India, and make an even bigger leap from what smartphones or mobile platforms can enable? Let us know your views in the comments box below   InformationWeek