Financial Crime World

Belgium’s Banks Rely on AI-Powered Fraud Detection to Combat Surge in Online Transactions

Brussels, Belgium - A New Era of Fraud Prevention

As online transactions continue to soar worldwide amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, fraudsters are adapting their tactics to capitalize on the surge. In response, Belgian banks are turning to advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning-powered fraud detection tools to stay ahead of the threats.

The Challenge: Detecting New Fraud Patterns

According to a recent study by IBM Institute for Business Value, it typically takes over four weeks for financial institutions to detect new fraud patterns, and another four weeks to adjust their scoring engines. This lag time can result in significant losses, with estimated global online payment fraud losses expected to reach $48 billion by 2023, up from $22 billion in 2018.

The Solution: Safer Payments

To address this issue, IBM has developed Safer Payments, a solution that leverages AI and machine learning to learn from past transactions and generate best-fit rules for fraud analysts. This allows card issuers and acquirers to optimize their fraud management, achieving higher detection rates and lower false positive rates.

Crelan Partners with IBM

Belgium-based Crelan, a leading bank in the region, has recently partnered with IBM to integrate the Safer Payments solution into its online payment channels. The agreement underscores Crelan’s commitment to tackling transactional online fraud and ensuring a safe payments environment for its customers.

“Crelan is dedicated to safeguarding our customers’ assets and interests by investing in cutting-edge technology,” said Anne Fievez, CIO at Crelan. “Our partnership with IBM enables us to leverage AI and machine learning to stay ahead of emerging fraud techniques and react quickly to new threats.”

Successful Results

IBM’s Safer Payments solution has already yielded successful results for clients such as:

  • FIS (USA)
  • STET (Carte Bancaire France)
  • Several other major payment portfolio holders

IBM’s Commitment to Fraud Prevention

“Fraud prevention requires constant attention, and our partnership with Crelan demonstrates our commitment to helping financial institutions stay ahead of the curve,” said Dominique De Coninck, Financial Crimes Insights Leader in IBM Europe. “Our AI-powered solutions are designed to deliver insights and quickly adapt to a changing threat landscape, ensuring a safe and secure payments environment for consumers.”