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JP Morgan Chase has notified personnel assigned to its new headquarters in Manhattan that they are required to share their physical characteristics to gain entry the high-value building.

Shift from Voluntary to Mandatory

The investment bank had initially intended for the enrollment of employee biometrics at its Manhattan skyscraper to be discretionary.

Yet, staff of the biggest American bank who have begun work at the new headquarters since last month have obtained emails stating that physical scan entry was now "mandatory".

How Biometric Access Works

The new entry system requires employees to submit their hand geometry to pass through entry points in the main floor in place of using their identification cards.

Building Specifications and Capacity

The main office building, which reportedly was built for $3 billion to build, will ultimately serve as a home for ten thousand employees once it is fully occupied before year-end.

Protection Reasoning

The financial company opted not to respond but it is believed that the employment of biological markers for admission is created to make the premises more secure.

Alternative Access Methods

There are special provisions for certain staff members who will still be able to use a ID card for access, although the standards for who will employ more conventional entry methods remains undefined.

Supporting Mobile Applications

Alongside the deployment of palm and eye scanners, the bank has also released the "JPMC Work" mobile app, which serves as a electronic pass and portal for employee services.

The application permits employees to coordinate guest registration, use building layouts of the premises and schedule dining from the facility's 19 restaurant options.

Security Context

The deployment of tighter entry controls comes as American companies, particularly those with substantial activities in New York, look to strengthen protection following the attack of the chief executive of one of the US's largest health insurers in July.

Brian Thompson, the head of the insurance giant, was the victim of the attack not far from the financial district.

Potential Wider Implementation

It is not known if the financial firm plans to deploy biometric access for personnel at its locations in other key banking hubs, such as London.

Corporate Surveillance Context

The move comes during controversy over the use of digital tools to track workers by their employers, including tracking physical presence metrics.

In recent months, all the bank's employees on mixed remote-office plans were directed they must return to the workplace full-time.

Management Commentary

The company's leader, the financial executive, has described JP Morgan's state-of-the-art 60-storey headquarters as a "impressive representation" of the company.

The banker, one of the world's most powerful bankers, recently alerted that the probability of the financial markets experiencing a decline was significantly higher than many financiers anticipated.