Varun K Prasad

CMS Computers, the smart card-based solutions provider, is augmenting its operations with plans to foray into the financial and banking segment, one of the high growth drivers for smart cards in India. The Rs 300 crore (FY 2001-2002) company, which had been catering to the transport and campus time and access control applications until now, will be extending its portfolio to leverage on the growing demand for smart card applications in the financial segment.

According to Varun K Prasad, director of Mumbai-based CMS Computers, the company will be ready to launch solutions catering to this segment by early next year. In addition, the company has outlined research and development work in the area of remote management. With these new activities planned over the next year, CMS has outlined a 10 percent increase in its investment budget for next year. The company is now targeting a 30 percent growth for FY 2002-2003.

According to Prasad, there is estimated to be over 100 percent growth in the e-cash market. “Because of the RBI guidelines all the new credit and debit cards will become smart cards in the next 2-3 years, which will spurt the growth for e-cash,” he explained. The company is in the process of developing smart card-based financial solutions and is expected to roll them out in the market in the next 4-6 months. The new offerings will include card-processing solutions.

On the R&D front, the company is also working in the area of managing corporate environment more effectively from remote point of view for better efficiency and improved productivity. CMS’s R&D team is also working on various other aspects of smart card-based traffic control applications, which includes tolling, more heuristic kind of traffic control, etc. The company is also working on products for corporate productivity enhancement, which includes single smart card for use within the corporate. “For instance having a single card for time attendance, access to ERP, HR systems, etc. This will help in filling the gaps and integration for more effective communication,” added Prasad.

In addition, the company has also recently launched biometric smart card solutions. With the addition of biometric technologies the company is set to have an edge over its competitors. The new biometric smart card solutions are targeted to provide an extensive array of highly secure identification and personal verification. CMS’s products include smart cards, EDM, kiosk, security and traffic systems. An end-to-end solutions provider, the company has three R&D centres located in Thiruvananthapuram, Mumbai and Pune.