Accelerate What, Exactly? The Fraud Side of Fintech Innovation

Accelerate What, Exactly? The Fraud Side of Fintech Innovation

What’s up, fraud fighters, and welcome back to Fraud Forward! This conversation is one I think a lot of us need right now. Financial services are moving fast. Fintech innovations, AI in financial services, real-time payments, embedded finance, digital assets, and payment systems modernization are all changing how institutions serve members and customers. And let me just assure you, fraud fighters are not anti-innovation. We are not the department of no. We are the people who know what happens when fintech innovation moves faster than controls, when fintech compliance is treated like a checklist, and when fraud risk management gets discussed only after something has already gone wrong. In this episode, I sit down with Nyla Cortes to talk through what fintech innovations [https://www.sardine.ai/media/fraud-forward/episodes/fintech-innovations] really mean for credit unions, community banks, fraud teams, BSA officers, compliance leaders, and frontline staff trying to protect people in real time. Because behind every fraud case is a customer. A member. A family. Someone whose trust, dignity, and financial stability may be permanently affected. That is why this conversation matters. WHAT YOU’LL HEAR IN THIS EPISODE: * A practical look at how fintech innovations are changing fraud risk inside financial institutions * Why modernization creates opportunity, but also expands the attack surface * What AI governance in financial services needs to look like before something goes wrong * How AI in financial services can support fraud prevention strategies when governance is built in * Why real-time payments require real-time fraud operations * How fintech partnerships and third-party risk management can introduce hidden exposure * Why fintech risk management has to include fraud, compliance, BSA, AML, operations, and frontline teams * What community bank fintech adoption looks like when resources are already stretched * Why operational readiness matters before losses show up on a report * How we can support fintech fraud prevention without forgetting the people impacted by crime This is not a political conversation. It is not a vendor pitch. It is a practical, honest conversation about what it takes to modernize responsibly. WHO SHOULD LISTEN: This episode is for the fraud fighters doing the work every day. * Fraud directors and fraud analysts * BSA and AML officers * Risk and compliance leaders * Community bank and credit union teams * Frontline tellers and member service representatives * Vendor risk and fintech partnership teams * Cybersecurity and payments professionals * Regulators and policy advisors * Anyone trying to balance fintech innovation, fraud prevention strategies, consumer protection, and operational reality If you are sitting inside a smaller institution thinking, “Holy moly, we are being asked to move faster, but we do not have the same resources as the big banks,” I want you to hear me. You are not behind because you are doing something wrong. You are operating in an environment where fintech innovations are accelerating faster than the resources available to manage the risk. And that means we have to get very intentional. Show Notes: * https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/05/integrating-financial-technology-innovation-into-regulatory-frameworks/ [https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/05/integrating-financial-technology-innovation-into-regulatory-frameworks/] * https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2026/05/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-integrates-financial-technology-innovation-into-regulatory-frameworks/ [https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2026/05/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-integrates-financial-technology-innovation-into-regulatory-frameworks/] * https://www.sardine.ai/whitepapers/the-agentic-ai-oversight-framework [https://www.sardine.ai/whitepapers/the-agentic-ai-oversight-framework]

Fraud as Infrastructure

What’s up, fraud fighters, and welcome back to Fraud Forward! I want to take a moment and talk about something bigger than one scam trend, one crypto headline, or one fraud typology. We are talking about fraud as infrastructure. Because what we are seeing right now is not isolated activity. Organized fraud networks are operating like coordinated systems, connecting pig butchering scams, social engineering scams, mule accounts, crypto money laundering, fraud and AML gaps, and national security and financial crime concerns. And y’all, this matters because behind every case is a real person. Someone’s retirement. Someone’s trust. Someone’s financial stability. Someone who was manipulated by a criminal network long before the money ever moved. WHAT YOU’LL HEAR IN THIS EPISODE: * Why fraud as infrastructure changes how we need to think about financial crime * How organized fraud networks are using scam infrastructure, mule accounts, and crypto money laundering * Why pig butchering scams and social engineering scams are not simple one-off cases * Where financial institutions are making progress in fraud prevention and scam prevention * Why fraud investigations need stronger collaboration across fraud, AML, cybercrime, and law enforcement * How public-private partnerships can help close the gaps criminals are exploiting * What fraud fighters can take back to their teams as organized fraud becomes more connected WHO SHOULD LISTEN: * Financial institution leaders and fraud professionals * Risk, compliance, fraud and AML, and cybersecurity teams * BSA officers and fraud investigators * Regulators and policy advisors * Public-private partnership leaders * Victim support and advocacy professionals * Anyone trying to understand how organized fraud impacts real people Fraud does not live in silos, and neither should our solutions.

Payment Fraud Prevention and the Future of Trust

What’s up, fraud fighters, and welcome back to Fraud Forward! I wanted to do something different for our 100th episode. I didn’t want a victory lap. I wanted an honest conversation about payment fraud prevention, where our systems feel fragile, and whether we are building financial infrastructure worthy of public trust. I brought together Karisse Hendrick, Becky Reed, David Maimon, and Jeff Taylor to talk about what fraud fighters are seeing across banking, payments, e-commerce, digital assets, and fraud research. Fraud is moving fast. Payments are moving faster. AI fraud detection and AI fraud prevention are becoming more important every day. Institutions are trying to balance innovation, regulation, speed, and protection all at once. This conversation is not just about payment fraud detection or payment risk management. Behind every account takeover fraud event, business email compromise attack, wire fraud case, ACH fraud prevention gap, or social engineering fraud scheme is a real person, a real business, and a real loss of trust. WHAT YOU’LL HEAR IN THIS EPISODE: * How faster payments are changing real-time payment fraud prevention * Why payment fraud detection must move beyond isolated incidents * How AI fraud prevention, AI fraud detection, behavioral biometrics, and device intelligence are changing fraud strategy * Why business email compromise, check fraud, wire fraud prevention, ACH fraud prevention, and account takeover fraud remain major concerns * How digital payment fraud is evolving across banks, merchants, marketplaces, and digital asset rails * Why social engineering fraud continues to exploit trust, emotion, and human behavior * What collaboration, fraud education, and payment risk management need to look like moving forward WHO SHOULD LISTEN: * Fraud fighters across banking, fintech, payments, and e-commerce * Financial institution leaders and fraud professionals * Risk, compliance, cybersecurity, and payment operations teams * Teams focused on real-time payment fraud prevention * Professionals working on ACH fraud prevention, wire fraud prevention, and account takeover fraud * Leaders evaluating AI fraud prevention, behavioral biometrics, device intelligence, and fraud orchestration * Anyone who cares about protecting trust in financial services

Future of Fraud Operations: We Can’t Fight This Alone

What’s up, fraud fighters, and welcome back to Fraud Forward! In part one, you heard fraud fighters describe the current state of fraud with words like acceleration, chaos, fractured, and explosive. And honestly, none of those felt exaggerated. But in this episode, I wanted to ask a different question. Not just what fraud feels like right now, but what teams are doing that they are actually proud of. And that is where the conversation shifted. Instead of only hearing about pressure and burnout, I started hearing about collaboration, communication, empathy, innovation, and people who are trying to figure this out together in real time. That is what stood out to me most at Fraud Fight Club this year. Not just the tools. Not just the AI in fraud prevention conversations. Not even just the tactics. The people. This episode is really about the future of fraud operations [https://www.sardine.ai/media/fraud-forward/episodes/future-of-fraud-operations]. And if there is one thing that came through loud and clear, it is this: we cannot fight this alone anymore. WHAT YOU’LL HEAR IN THIS EPISODE: * Why fraud prevention in banking is becoming more collaborative * How fraud and AML collaboration is helping teams see more of the full picture * Why 314(b) information sharing matters in today’s fraud environment * How fraud prevention strategy is shifting from reactive detection to proactive prevention * Why human-centered fraud prevention and empathy in fraud investigations still matter * How fraud prevention technology and fraud analytics are changing the way teams work * What fraud prevention professionals are doing right now to build stronger networks YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE IF: * You work in banking fraud detection or fraud risk management * You are trying to improve fraud decisioning inside your institution * You care about real-time fraud prevention and operational response * You want to understand where credit union fraud prevention is headingYou believe collaboration is no longer optional in fraud operations If you liked this episode, be sure to subscribe and review the podcast on iTunes, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you listen to podcasts. It really helps with getting the word out.

The State of Fraud in One Word

What’s up fraud fighters, and welcome back to Fraud Forward! I asked a room full of fraud professionals one question: describe the current state of fraud in one word. And the answers? Acceleration. Chaos. Explosive. Scary. Unmanageable. No one said stable. No one said under control. So in this episode, I’m breaking down what those answers tell us about evolving fraud trends [https://www.sardine.ai/media/fraud-forward/episodes/evolving-fraud-trends], the current fraud landscape, and the pressure fraud teams are feeling across banking, financial services, and every channel where fraud is moving faster than our systems were built to handle. This isn’t just about the latest fraud trends. This is about fraud attack evolution, AI-driven fraud attacks, organized fraud trends, and the operational reality of trying to protect real people in real time. WHAT YOU WILL HEAR IN THIS EPISODE: * A structured breakdown of evolving fraud trends from fraud professionals on the front lines * A look at the latest fraud trends shaping banking, payments, and financial services * Insight into how AI-driven fraud attacks and automation are accelerating scam operations * Discussion of cross-channel fraud trends, from impersonation scams to social engineering fraud trends * A focused look at fraud operations trends and why teams feel more reactive than proactive * Practical fraud prevention strategy insights for adapting to faster, more coordinated attacks * A call for stronger collaboration, benchmarking, and shared intelligence across the fraud ecosystem This is one of those episodes where we move from what fraud feels like to what we actually need to do about it. WHO SHOULD LISTEN: * Financial institution leaders and fraud professionals * Risk, compliance, and cybersecurity teams * Fraud operations, payments, and product leaders * Banking and credit union teams tracking fraud trends in financial services * Industry advocates and fraud community members * Anyone trying to understand modern fraud trends and how fast they are changing If you’re in this space and you’ve felt that pressure, this episode is for you. Because we’re all dealing with it. Links: FI Benchmarking Survey Link: https://form.typeform.com/to/WqJf9uqb [https://form.typeform.com/to/WqJf9uqb]