AI fintechs unite to fight money mulling scams

Artificial intelligence-powered financial technology firms have joined forces to tackle online scams and money mulling in the Philippines, as fraudsters become more sophisticated through deepfakes, synthetic identities, and advanced phishing tools.

According to the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC), cybercrime complaints in the country surged to over 10,000 in 2024—triple the 3,317 cases in 2023—resulting in losses close to PHP 198 million.

The Department of Information and Communications Technology, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, and the National Bureau of Investigation have repeatedly urged the public to remain vigilant as digital fraud escalates nationwide.

Money mulling, where individuals lend or sell their bank or e-wallet accounts for criminal use, has become a priority concern, prompting the Securities and Exchange Commission to issue public warnings and tighten enforcement.

Financial institutions are leveraging AI and machine learning to fight back, aiming to dismantle complex networks of fraudsters who exploit accounts for illegal activities.

On its seventh anniversary, Trusting Social Philippines (TSPH), an AI-driven fintech firm, reaffirmed its commitment to combating financial crime and boosting safe financial inclusion.

“Financial inclusion isn’t abstract; it fuels economic progress,” said Johnny Escaler, CEO of Trusting Social Philippines.

“Our mission is to tackle one of the most fundamental problems of finance—powering inclusion with AI,” Escaler said. “The work we do has never been more critical.”

TSPH provides AI-powered credit scoring, risk assessment, identity verification, and customer acquisition tools to banks and financial institutions, helping serve millions of underbanked Filipinos.

The firm partners with telcos like Globe and Smart and e-wallets like GCash and Maya to deliver services at scale.

During its anniversary event, Trusting Social hosted a fireside chat titled “The Frontline Defense: Combating Money Mulling and Fostering a Secure Financial Ecosystem,” which brought together banking and fintech stakeholders to discuss collaborative fraud prevention strategies.

Trusting Social introduced Trusting Insights 2.0, an upgraded credit intelligence platform that enables risk scoring for up to 95 percent of adult Filipinos.

The company also announced SelfieScore, a real-time biometric KYC solution designed to counter identity theft and deepfake fraud.

“If fraudsters are organized, we need to be organized,” said Jaideep Lakshminarayanan, CFO of Trusting Social.

“If money mulling is rising, better AI models are needed. If OTP verification fails, we need biometrics,” he added. “Traditional methods will change; the market and fraudsters are evolving—we must evolve too.”

Lakshminarayanan emphasized that security is inseparable from inclusion.

“Fraud is integral to financial inclusion,” he said. “Through expanded partnerships, we scale trust to score 95% of the adult population. Inclusion without security is just a costly risk profile. Trust Vision ensures that doesn’t happen.”

AI, the company said, now plays a frontline role in fighting cyber threats by offering real-time, adaptive defenses that can detect new fraud techniques beyond the reach of legacy systems.

Trusting Social stressed that businesses, regulators, and civil society must collaborate more closely to share intelligence, promote responsible AI innovation, and protect the financial ecosystem.

The company concluded that with organized cybercrime on the rise, a unified response is essential to keep digital finance secure, inclusive, and resilient.