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KUALA LUMPUR – The banking industry and Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet) are working towards introducing industry-wide fraud alerts, with pilot testing involving selected banks targeted for the first half (1H) of 2027.
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) governor Datuk Seri Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour said the alerts would warn banks and customers of potential risks before a transaction is completed.
“These alerts will prompt customers to pause, think and verify before proceeding,” he said in his opening remarks at the International Conference on Financial Crime & Counter Terrorism Financing (IFCTF) 2026 today.
Abdul Rasheed said the capability could cause some inconvenience to customers and may also lead to complaints.
“However, these measures are necessary to strive for an appropriate balance between offering convenience and protecting customers from fraud, particularly those with high-risk status,” he said.
He said PayNet had flagged more than 1,600 suspicious accounts, many of which were subsequently assessed as presenting new related risks.
“This demonstrates the potential of network-level intelligence by collecting information required by institutions to identify risks that may appear invisible from the perspective of any one individual institution,” he said.
To support this shift, Abdul Rasheed said BNM had also strengthened the foundations of technology risk management and fraud prevention.
“The revised risk management technology policy document strengthens financial institutions’ resilience against technology-related risks, cyber risks and rapidly evolving digital crimes.
“Meanwhile, the recently issued financial institutions’ response to fraud policy document further reinforces fraud risk management capabilities while promoting the responsible use of intelligence, analytics and technologies,” he said.
Looking ahead, he said the industry should also move beyond head-to-head information exchanges towards more structured, transnational and technology-enabled partnerships.
“Underpinned by trust, sound governance structures and secure information-sharing mechanisms, the potential of both public-private and private-private partnerships can be powerful and enormous in advancing intelligence-led financial transformation,” he added. – BERNAMA
