nsKnox, the leader in Global Bank Account Validation and B2B Payment Security, together with Treasury Dragons, a global network for buyers, specifiers, and users of corporate treasury technology, released a new research report, titled “Is treasury in denial of payment fraud?”. The report reveals the alarming disparity between perception and reality regarding the cost and scale of B2B payment fraud and how companies are protecting themselves from this threat.
The survey’s results showed that almost nine in ten corporations experienced at least one payment fraud attempt in the past year, with 61% of them reporting multiple fraud attacks annually, yet many corporate treasurers still don’t realize the scale of the problem.
While 86% of those questioned said fraudsters had targeted their company, the same respondents significantly underestimated how widespread the problem is. Only just over half (51%) correctly estimated that more than 80% of firms were affected.
The data comes from the first edition of the Payments Fraud Report and is based on responses from 100 corporate treasurers in organizations with annual revenues above $300M.
The underestimation of the threat from payments fraud is reflected in the uptake of automated systems to detect and prevent fraud. Only 43% of treasurers said they had such a system for payables fraud (AP) and just 15% for receivables fraud (AR).
At the same time, responsibility for tackling payments fraud remains a gray area for many. Just 23% of respondents thought the treasury should be responsible, while almost half said ‘all departments.’
“It’s clear from this research that payment fraud is underestimated, and the ownership for addressing this significant risk is unclear. There is more work to do if treasurers are to be effective in tackling the menace of payment fraud,” said Nithai Barzam, President and COO of nsKnox. “All our experience in detecting and preventing fraud suggests that this threat will continue to grow both in volume and sophistication, and an automated, technology-based approach is crucial to fending off that threat.”
“Corporate payments fraud is a serious and growing threat,” said Llewelyn Mullooly, Head of Analytics at Treasury Dragons. “Yet our research shows that too many treasurers are unaware of just how widespread it is.”
