EMVCo Newsletter: Q1 2025

Message from the Chair of the EMVCo Board of Managers Against the backdrop of a rapidly evolving payments industry, EMVCo is committed to collaborating with the community to develop and evolve EMV® Technologies that support innovation and address emerging marketplace needs. Earlier this month, EMVCo hosted our Board of Advisors meeting in Athens, Greece, where attendees explored how the strategic direction of EMVCo, EMV Specifications and Technologies are set to be shaped by new developments in payment initiation and authentication, shifts in global mobility and a changing regulatory landscape. We look forward to building on this engagement with our upcoming Technical Meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, in April, which will give EMVCo Associates the opportunity to delve deeper into the technical considerations driving EMV Specification development. Our annual EMV User Meeting will also take place in Osaka, Japan, in June, providing a platform for the entire EMVCo community to come together and explore the technologies and trends impacting the payments industry. The below summarises key EMVCo news, technical updates and activities from the first quarter, and highlights the latest educational resources available to support understanding of EMVCo’s work. We encourage you to share this newsletter with your colleagues and industry peers. Soumya Chakrabarty Chair of EMVCo Board of Managers, 2024 – 2025 Upcoming Meetings Associates can register for the following sessions via the EMVCo website. Technical Meeting, 8-10 April 2025, Bangkok, Thailand EMV User Meeting, 10-11 June 2025, Osaka, Japan* Board of Advisors Meeting, 21-22 October 2025, Charleston, USA Technical Meeting, 17-20 November 2025, Vienna, Austria *EMVCo Subscribers are also invited to these meetings.  Not yet an EMVCo Associate? Find out more about how to participate. News EMVCo Annual Report 2024 EMVCo’s 2024 Annual Report reflects on a landmark year for the organisation and explores the key initiatives shaping seamless and secure payments in 2025 and beyond. Learn more here. Quantum Computing and EMV Chip Cryptography EMVCo has published a security position statement summarising the impact of quantum computing on EMV Chip cryptography, with a detailed analysis of the considerations for both asymmetric and symmetric algorithms providing a realistic assessment of the actual risks posed. Learn more here. Technical Updates EMV® Biometric Card Specifications for Payment Systems – Biometric Card Provider Requirements Following extensive engagement from EMVCo Associate and Subscribers, dedicated performance requirements for the biometric sensors on biometric payment cards have now been published. Work is continuing on the development of a supporting testing approval process.   EMV Contact Chip Features Sunsetting – Phase 1 EMVCo has worked closely with EMVCo Associates and Subscribers to identify certain EMV Contact Chip Specification features to be sunset with the aim of collectively improving security, optimising the usability of the specifications, simplifying editorial understanding, and removing obsolete or unused features. As part of the planned phased approach, this document details how Offline Plaintext PIN (unattended), Combined Cardholder Verification Method (CVM), Transaction Certificate Data Object List (TDOL) and Unused Tags will be sunsetted. EMV® Contactless Specifications Book E Security and Key Management Version 1.1 Book E is a dedicated document that defines the approaches and cryptographic methods – including Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) – to ensure adequate security functionality. Version 1.1 includes editorial updates to improve the consistency and clarity of the document contents. Updates to EMV® Contactless Book C-8 – Kernel 8 Specification EMVCo has published a specification bulletin detailing clarifications and corrections to EMV® Contactless Book C-8 – Kernel 8 Specification. EMV® Mobile Payment: Software