Mastercard’s service that enables its cardholders to authenticate a purchase with a fingerprint or selfie added its first markets outside US and Europe.

The card firm’s Identity Check Mobile service replaces passwords with biometric verification, so speeding up the checkout process and improving security, it argues.

The cardholder can confirm their identity with a smartphone fingerprint scanner or via facial recognition technology by taking a selfie on their phone.

Previous rollouts took place in the US and Europe. The service has been implemented in 14 markets in total, ahead of debuts in Brazil and Mexico. The two countries are the first in Latin America.

Mastercard has become a strong backer of biometrics, following trials in the Netherlands, US and Canada where participants voiced a preference over traditional passwords.