Digital payments in Asia-Pacific have scaled at a remarkable speed, powered by QR codes, super apps, and real-time transfers that are now embedded in everyday life. That same momentum has created fertile ground for increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes, with Greater China and the wider region contending with attacks that move quickly across channels, platforms, and borders. From card-not-present fraud and enumeration attacks to social engineering and AI-enabled scams, financial institutions and merchants face pressure to defend high-volume digital ecosystems without slowing growth or compromising customer trust.

Against this backdrop, global networks such as Visa sit at a critical junction between banks, fintechs, merchants, and regulators, giving them a broad view of how fraud is evolving and how the industry is responding. In this TNGlobal Q&A, Axel Boye-Moller, Head of Value-Added Services, Asia Pacific, Visa, discusses the latest fraud patterns in Greater China compared with the rest of Asia-Pacific, and how data-driven tools are being deployed to detect and disrupt attacks earlier in the transaction flow. He also explains how long-standing issues around legacy infrastructure continue to shape the pace of modernization for many banks in the region.

The conversation explores a range of technologies currently shaping fraud prevention, including AI and machine learning, tokenization, biometrics, and behavioral analytics, as well as newer concepts such as agentic commerce and trusted agent protocols. Boye-Moller outlines how these approaches can be layered to reduce false positives, protect instant payment environments, and preserve user experience even as controls become more granular and adaptive.

Beyond technology, the interview also explores the role of partnerships and policy in combating fraud that increasingly crosses markets and payment rails. Boye-Moller highlights how collaboration with governments, fintechs, financial institutions, and technology providers is evolving toward more proactive, intelligence-led models. Insights shared across the finance, fintech, and broader digital ecosystem offer a practical snapshot of where fraud prevention in Asia-Pacific is heading, and what businesses need to consider as they design more secure, interoperable, and customer-centric payment experiences.

What are the most pressing fraud trends in Greater China, and how do they compare to the rest of Asia-Pacific?

Unfortunately, our region continues to be a hotbed of a diverse set of fraud and scam activities, with variations across markets that make mitigation complex.

In Greater China, similar to other regions that commonly adopt QR payments, QR code payment fraud remains a major challenge. Fraudsters can exploit static QR codes to obscure recipient identities, creating challenges for traceability. And of course, AI-enabled scams, including impersonation attempts, are growing rapidly. Traditional threats like card-not-present fraud and enumeration attacks persist, influenced by high transaction volumes in this market.

In comparison, the broader Asia-Pacific region contends with a wider variety of fraud types. Phishing and social engineering dominate in markets like Japan, with 1.2 million phishing cases reported in the first half of 2025. Southeast Asia faces challenges with money muling and scam compounds, which drive large-scale fraudulent activity. AI-powered attacks, including enumeration and account testing, are also on the rise across the region, highlighting the growing sophistication of fraud tactics.

Overall, the scale and sophistication of fraud across Greater China and the wider Asia-Pacific region are prompting growing concern among businesses. As attacks become more targeted and technologically advanced, companies are realising that traditional defences are no longer sufficient. Many are now investing in stronger authentication, AI-driven monitoring tools, and cross-border intelligence sharing to better protect themselves and their customers from an increasingly complex fraud landscape.

AI and machine learning are transforming fraud prevention globally. How do you see these technologies reshaping the fight against financial crime in Greater China and/or the region? Can you share examples from Visa?

As fraud tactics are becoming increasingly sophisticated, AI and machine learning are potential game changers when it comes to fraud prevention. In the last decade, Visa has invested some US$3.5 billion in our AI and data infrastructure to make paying and being paid safer and more reliable.

These AI-driven solutions are helping businesses stay ahead of emerging fraud risks by detecting anomalies in real time and adapting to new patterns as they evolve. For example, Visa Advanced Authorization analyzes hundreds of risk indicators within milliseconds to flag potentially fraudulent activity before it happens, while Visa Risk Manager gives financial institutions and merchants the tools to fine-tune their fraud controls based on local transaction trends. In a region where fraudsters are constantly innovating, these capabilities give businesses a critical layer of intelligence and protection that evolves as fast as the threats themselves.

All of this happens seamlessly in the background, ensuring that security doesn’t come at the expense of convenience.

Another example is Featurespace, a recent Visa acquisition. Featurespace provides an end-to-end platform that detects and prevents fraud in real time across multiple channels, fraud types, and payment rails – including cards, acquiring, and real-time account-to-account payments – giving clients a 360-view of customer activity. Its adaptive behavioral analytics provide real-time monitoring and anomaly detection, with a client successfully enabling financial institutions to reduce false positives by up to 91 percent. This not only improves fraud detection accuracy but also enhances the customer experience and reduces operational costs.

What proactive strategies or innovations are most effective for stopping fraud before it happens?

Proactive fraud prevention today means staying one step ahead of the threat. That requires a layered strategy combining advanced analytics, secure infrastructure, and close collaboration. AI and machine learning remain at the core, identifying unusual behavior and learning from new attack patterns to stop fraud before it happens.

Tokenization further strengthens defences by replacing sensitive data with unique digital identifiers that are useless if stolen. As real-time and instant payments grow, advanced algorithms are being used to score risk within milliseconds—balancing speed with safety so that legitimate transactions are approved without delay.

The rise of agentic commerce, where AI-powered systems can initiate transactions or make purchasing decisions on behalf of users, adds a new dimension to this challenge. Securing these autonomous interactions will depend on robust identity verification, continuous monitoring, and adaptive risk models that can detect subtle signs of compromise. The Visa Trusted Agent Protocol (TAP) is an example of an emerging solution, made to help merchants verify legitimate agents and filter out malicious bots. Ultimately, preventing fraud in this new era isn’t just about reacting to attacks—it’s about building intelligence and trust directly into the way digital commerce operates.

Many banks in Asia-Pacific still rely on legacy systems that can slow down innovation. How is Visa helping them to modernize, keep pace, and remain interoperable without a drastic overhaul?

Legacy systems remain a major constraint for many financial institutions in Asia-Pacific, where older infrastructure can make it difficult to adopt new payment models or integrate emerging technologies. But modernization doesn’t have to mean a full system replacement. Many banks are now turning to modular, API-first solutions that let them upgrade in stages while maintaining continuity. Visa’s Pismo platform, for instance, provides a cloud-native foundation that allows banks to build and scale new digital payment experiences alongside their existing systems, helping them modernize without large-scale disruption.

Meanwhile, Visa Payment Passkeys (VPP) prioritize security and interoperability by replacing the need for OTPs and passwords with device-bound credentials. Even if login details are intercepted, they can’t be reused elsewhere. This greatly reduces the risk of fraud, especially when Passkeys are created within banking apps.

By combining such technologies with advisory support, banks can modernize more efficiently, maintaining the flexibility to innovate while ensuring every new capability is built on a foundation of security, compliance, and trust.

What emerging technologies or approaches could be game-changers for fraud prevention in Greater China and Asia-Pacific?

Technologies like AI, machine learning, and tokenization are already transforming fraud prevention, and their impact is only set to grow.

Beyond these, behavioral analytics, biometrics, and blockchain technology are emerging as complementary tools in the fight against fraud. Behavioral analytics detect anomalies in user behavior, while biometrics like fingerprint and facial recognition provide robust identity verification. Blockchain, with its tamper-resistant transaction records, offers potential for secure data sharing and fraud tracking across borders. Together, these technologies represent a holistic, multi-layered approach to fraud prevention.

How do you see partnerships with governments, fintechs, and others evolving to tackle complex fraud?

Collaboration is the cornerstone of tackling complex fraud, and Visa is committed to fostering deeper partnerships across the payments ecosystem. As fraud becomes more sophisticated, partnerships with governments, financial institutions, fintechs, and technology providers are evolving to focus on proactive, technology-driven solutions that address emerging threats.

The future of partnerships lies in greater integration and inclusivity. We anticipate more cross-sector collaborations, where governments, fintechs, and financial institutions work together to share data securely and develop holistic fraud prevention strategies. For example, blockchain technology could play a role in creating transparent, tamper-proof systems for sharing fraud intelligence across borders. Additionally, advancements in behavioral biometrics and adaptive authentication will further enhance the ability to detect and prevent fraud in real time. Visa’s role in this evolving landscape is to act as a trusted technology partner, providing the infrastructure, expertise, and tools that enable these partnerships to thrive.

What advice do you have for Asia-Pacific businesses adopting fraud prevention tech, especially in balancing security and customer experience?

Balancing security with a smooth customer experience requires more than just adding new layers of protection; it is about building intelligence into every stage of the transaction. Businesses should focus on solutions that strengthen defences while keeping payments fast and intuitive. AI-driven systems that detect anomalies in real time, combined with tools like tokenization that remove sensitive data from the payment flow, allow companies to protect users without adding friction.

For businesses in Asia-Pacific, the most effective approach is proactive rather than reactive. That means investing in adaptable, scalable technologies that can evolve as fraud tactics change, training teams and customers to recognize risks early, and working with partners who can provide both technical expertise and shared intelligence. Ultimately, the goal is to make security invisible, so that customers experience trust and ease, even as sophisticated systems work behind the scenes to keep them safe.

Featured image: QR code” by Christiaan Colen is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0