StarChip® and CEA-Leti to develop a Contactless Front End for Smart Card applications

StarChip®, expert in designing and qualifying Smart Card ICs, and CEA-Leti, the leading French semiconductor research institute, have signed an agreement to develop a Contactless Front End for Smart Card applications. The Contactless Front End is the result of Leti’s many years of expertise in Contactless and will enable applications such as Transport, Banking and Identity.

This partnership includes technology and know-how transfer to StarChip® to address all the aspects of the Contactless technologies. Innovative design architecture combined with accurate simulation tools are implemented to ensure the quality, interoperability and security of the Contactless Front End.

The combination of StarChip® expertise in secure IC development, industrialization and certifications with the CEA-Leti’s proven Contactless technology will allow StarChip® to bring to the market state-of-the art and very competitive Smart Card products to address Transport, Banking and Identity markets.

“StarChip®’s objective is to be a leading supplier for Smart Card market. The acquisition of Contactless technology and know-how from CEA-Leti is completing our technologies portfolio and will allow us to address all the Smart Card applications”, said Lucien Brau CEO and President of StarChip®. “We are glad to partner with very talented and experienced people like Leti’s people to bring to the market tailored solutions to Smart Card customers’ requirements”.

“Thanks to this collaboration, the CEA-Leti will bring to StarChip® the benefits of its more than ten years’ experience in contactless technology, in order to extend StarChip®’s product portfolio”, says Michel Durr, Program Manager in CEA-Leti. “This partnership is in complete adequacy with our strategy of creating innovation and transferring to industry”.