• The growth of e-commerce has expanded the amount of data available online for potential nefarious use.
• Dark Web monitoring serves as a valuable fraud indicator before losses hit credit portfolios.
• First-party fraud, which occurs when a credit applicant intentionally misleads creditors, is accelerating after relative stability in recent years.
• Many fraud tools deployed by companies to battle fraud rely on methods that don’t keep up with the latest threats.

• Portal Access: Centralized, secure, always-on. Customer can view, click and make payments on any or all invoices and statements.
• Text & Email Push Notifications: Instantly deliver payable links where customers are most responsive.
• Interactive Statements: Eliminate confusion with click-to-pay clarity.
• Automated Notifications: Keep customers on track with reminders and updates.
• UTA Partnership: Use all of UTA’s capabilities with integrated payment processing, including Compliant Credit Card Surcharging.

• Interactive Summaries: Portfolio aging views with last action+ automation coverage.
• Workload Sharing: Any team member can instantly pick up where another left off.
• Comprehensive Audit Log: Every action captured, down to the exact words spoken.

• Workflow Automation: Resolve short pays, disputes and credit alerts with collaborative digital workflows.
• Interactive Event Charts: Visualize every touchpoint for faster insight.
• Al-Enhanced Calling: Transcribe, summarize and analyze every call tied directly to invoices.
• Dynamic Messaging: Track when messages are opened and viewed.
• Automated Watchdog Alerts: Get notified of risk signals before they escalate.

• Share the Story: Keep AR, credit, sales and service aligned with a transparent timeline.
• Open Reports: Real-time visibility into open invoices and account status.
• Threaded Messaging: Collaborate directly inside the platform, tied to accounts.
• Automated Recording: Every event logged for accountability and compliance.

• Manufacturing misc. fabricated wire products
• Telephone communications
• Communications
• Equipment rental/leasing
• Miscellaneous publishing

1. Machine-to-machine mayhem: As organizations race to leverage agentic AI, the sheer volume of players entering the space will make fraud inevitable and impossible to ignore. Fraudsters will exploit agentic AI to commit new levels of digital fraud. With machine-to-machine interactions initiating transactions without clear ownership of liability, businesses will face growing uncertainty around agent ownership, intent and risk. Experian predicts fraud will reach a tipping point that will spark major conversations and decisions around liability, regulation and the role of agentic AI in shaping responsible digital commerce.
2. Deepfakes outsmart HR: Employment fraud is set to escalate in the remote workforce as generative AI (GenAI) tools generate hyper-tailored resumes and deepfake candidates capable of passing interviews in real time. Experian forecasts that employers will unknowingly onboard individuals who aren’t who they say they are, giving bad actors access to sensitive systems. This emerging threat is expected to reshape how organizations verify identity and intent in the hiring process.
3. Smarter homes, scarier threats: Smart homes are introducing new entry points for fraud. Devices like virtual assistants, smart locks, security systems, smart appliances and the coming use of humanoid robots will be exploited by bad actors to access personal data, monitor household activity and even take control of physical access points. Experian predicts that as the adoption of smart home devices continues to grow, so will the risk, with new forms of ransomware and opportunities for account hijacking, turning convenience into vulnerability for consumers.
4. Website cloning will overwhelm fraud teams: Cloned websites, where fraudsters replicate legitimate sites to phish consumers, are becoming easier to create through AI tools and harder to eliminate. Notably, even after takedown requests, spoofed domains continue to resurface. As companies are forced to play whack-a-mole to address these threats, they risk being distracted from broader fraud strategies, allowing other threats to escalate. Experian forecasts that cloned sites will continue to cause significant losses for online retailers and businesses by tricking consumers into sharing their credentials, fueling credit card fraud, accelerating identity theft and synthetic identities, and facilitating other forms of financial fraud.
5. Bots will break hearts and bank accounts: Emotionally intelligent bots powered by GenAI will carry out complex scams, like romance fraud and relative-in-need scams, without a human behind the keyboard. These bots will respond convincingly, build trust over time, and manipulate victims with precision and emotion. As they become harder to distinguish from real people and good bots, Experian predicts fraud will scale faster and become more financially and psychologically damaging.

• Over half of health and medical services and hospitality leaders are hitting the accelerator and planning to grow, full speed ahead.
• 25% of retail leaders are scaling back on current operations, the highest among the five industries.

• Manufacturing SBOs are building cash reserves and negotiating rates with suppliers.
• Health and medical services providers are focusing on building a customer retention strategy.

• More than half of leaders in health and medical services are expanding their use of AI; in contrast, half of leaders in construction are either just beginning to experiment with it or considering its use.
• 72% of hospitality and restaurant leaders are leveraging AI to analyze customer data.

• The Global Business Optimism Index dropped 6.5% amid trade policy uncertainty, softening sales and slowing trade. With continued tariff risks and global demand softening, businesses across emerging and advanced economies are pivoting inward, turning to domestic markets. More than a third (34%) of businesses identified domestic growth as the top fallback strategy in the face of potential tariff escalations.
• The Global Supply Chain Continuity Index declined 9.7%, bringing optimism levels down 18.6% year-to-date. Decreases among both advanced and emerging economies suggest systemic global supply chain challenges. More than half of the businesses surveyed outside the U.S. are actively seeking alternative international markets or partners beyond the U.S. The EU, at 23%, and Asia, excluding the Chinese Mainland, at 15%, emerged as the preferred alternatives. Only 5% of businesses identified the Chinese Mainland as their top fallback for growth, suggesting that geopolitical considerations are now a significant factor in market selection decisions.
• The Global Business Financial Confidence Index contracted 3.4%, with 60% of businesses displaying optimism about cheaper borrowing costs, down from nearly 70% last quarter. Less than half of businesses expect to receive timely payment for their goods and services, implying that more businesses appear to be delaying outflows to manage working capital more tightly, in part due to reducing margins.
• The Global Business Investment Confidence Index fell 13.1%, the third straight decline. Uncertainty surrounding global trade, supply chains and geopolitics has dominated business capital expenditure decisions and pushed confidence lower, despite many major central banks lowering interest rates. 55.4% of businesses are expecting to raise long–term funds, a drop from 70% the previous quarter, signifying businesses are not only delaying capital expenditures but are also deleveraging their balance sheets in preparation for long-term disruption.
• The Global Business ESG Index, which captures ESG sentiment, held steady, but sharp contrasts emerged. Medium-sized businesses, particularly in emerging economies, posted strong ESG gains, while large businesses in advanced economies saw declines, likely reflecting compliance strain and evolving disclosure requirements. Large businesses in emerging economies made only marginal gains, while those in advanced economies saw an 8.4% drop, possibly reflecting regulatory fatigue or cost pressures. Globally, one in six businesses placed ESG at the core of supplier selection, though it still trails traditional criteria such as cost competitiveness and geopolitical risk profile as primary decision drivers.

• External collaboration among the agencies, Federal Reserve Banks, and industry stakeholders;
• Consumer, business and industry education by the agencies and Federal Reserve Banks to educate about payments fraud;
• Regulation and supervision to mitigate payments fraud, including opportunities the Board may have related to check fraud;
• Payment fraud data collection and information sharing; and
• Federal Reserve Banks’ operator tools and services to reduce payments fraud.

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• Wire transfers were the payment method most frequently targeted by BEC scammers in 2024, reported by 63% of respondents, up from 39% in the previous survey. ACH credits, which were the prime targets for BEC in 2023, saw more BEC scam activity in 2024 than in the prior year, rising to 50% from 47% of respondents reporting incidents.
• “Classic” BEC scams, in which a fraudster impersonates a senior executive and requests a transfer of funds, saw a significant decline, with 49% of respondents reporting incidents in 2024 compared to 57% in 2023. Third-party impersonations, reported by 63% of respondents, remained the most frequent type of BEC scam.
• Twenty-two percent of organizations were able to recover 75% or more of the funds lost due to payments fraud in 2024. This is a sharp decrease from 2023 when 41% of organizations recovered the same amount. However, 58% of organizations were able to recoup up to 75% of their funds in 2024, up from 29% in 2023.

• Manufacturing misc. fabricated wire products
• Wholesale service establishment equipment
• Passenger car rental
• Manufacturing sheet metalwork
• Wholesale packaged frozen goods

Rising Complexity in Credit Management

• 48% of credit managers report longer payment collection times
• 39% face increased fraud attempts
• 32% struggle with customer credit evaluation

Traditional Methods Are No Longer Sufficient

• Nearly three-quarters of credit teams spend most of their day on AR and collections
• Sifting through paperwork, cross-referencing data sources, and manually updating customer files wastes time
• Manual credit checks and approvals create operational bottlenecks
• Lack of real-time data access leads to decisions based on outdated information
• One-size-fits-all collection approaches can damage valuable customer relationships

Technology Solutions Drive Transformation

• Modern platforms like NetNow automate routine tasks, freeing teams for strategic work
• Advanced analytics provide real-time insights into payment behaviors and risk factors
• Integration with existing ERP and accounting systems creates a single source of truth for credit decisions
• AI-driven credit scoring enables more accurate risk assessment
• Automated communication tools maintain customer relationships while improving collection effectiveness

Benefits of Modernization

• Reduced DSO
• Improved cash flow through faster invoice processing
• Enhanced risk management capabilities
• Better customer experience with 40% of credit managers seeing technology as key to improving customer relations
• Streamlined operations through automation of routine tasks

40% of credit managers are excited by the prospect of AR technology improving customer experience.

The digital transformation of credit management isn't just an option – it's becoming essential for finance teams looking to stay competitive and efficient in today's business environment.

The Future of Credit Management

• The Global Business Optimism Index increased 12.3% on the back of expected growth in sales, new orders, and favorable input costs amid easing global inflation. The increase in optimism is in sync with the latest upward revisions in global GDP forecast for 2024 by multilateral agencies. Globally, ICT, Wholesale and retail, and textile are the most optimistic sectors.
• The Global Supply Chain Continuity Index saw a marginal improvement of 1.2% stemming from businesses adjusting to the new supply chain environment, which continues to be disturbed by geopolitical tensions, longer shipping routes and climate-related disruptions. Large businesses’ optimism deteriorated significantly reflecting the challenges of an interconnected global supply chain. However, smaller businesses are more optimistic as they expect to reduce their supplier concentration risk.
• The Global Business Financial Confidence Index improved 12.3% as businesses are optimistic about their operating conditions and liquidity risk. Smaller businesses, that may previously have been relatively constrained in their approach to liquidity risk management, are now more optimistic about cash flow management given growing expectations of falling borrowing costs.
• The Global Business Investment Confidence Index increased 23.3%, signaling a meaningful uptick in optimism for capital spending, backed by an accommodative global monetary policy. Globally, small and medium-size businesses were more confident about the environment for M&A activity than larger businesses, likely because they see themselves as potentially attractive acquisition targets, especially promising startups in digital, fintech, and AI.
• The Global Business ESG Index increased 8.0% as businesses look to re-engage their sustainability initiatives. In the survey, more than one in two respondents indicated increased funding for ESG-related activities.

• Three percent of owners reported that all their borrowing needs were not satisfied. Twenty-nine percent reported all credit needs met and 58% said they were not interested in a loan. A net 6% reported their last loan was harder to get than in previous attempts.
• A net negative 8% (seasonally adjusted) of owners viewed current inventory stocks as “too low” in May, down four points from April and the lowest reading since October 1981.
• Owners’ plans to hire rose three points in May to a seasonally adjusted net 15%, the highest reading of the year.
• Seasonally adjusted, a net 28% plan price hikes in May, up two points from April.
• Six percent of owners reported that financing was their top business problem in May, up two points from April. The last time financing as a top business problem was this high was in June 2010.

• For the first time in the history of this survey, ACH credits surpassed wires as the most vulnerable payment type for BEC fraud. Even as most payment methods continue to be vulnerable to BEC, payments made via ACH credits (47%), wire transfers (39%) and ACH debits (20%) were most often targeted.
• In 2023, the most common source of payments fraud was an external source or individual (e.g., forged check, stolen card, corporate synthetic identity fraud). Sixty-five percent of financial professionals report that payment fraud at their companies was the result of actions by an individual outside the organization.
• Thirty percent of respondents were unsuccessful in recovering funds lost to fraud. Meanwhile, 29% managed to regain up to three-fourths of lost funds, and 41% successfully recouped over three-fourths of lost funds, the bulk of which were lost due to check fraud.

• Virtual Cards – 276%
• Instant Payments – 208%
• All Cards – 97%
  

The report identified that the greater traceability of digital payments is driving this high growth; replacing cash and cheques for businesses. The increased traceability for automated payment processing and reconciliation reduces the complexity of processing accounts payable and receivable.

The ability to control elements of B2B virtual card transactions, such as placing limits on the value and frequency of transactions, will enable businesses to better combat fraud, such as expenses fraud.

The report also forecasts an increase in all B2B card use, with the value of B2B payments by this method growing from $11 trillion in 2024 to $22 trillion globally by 2028. The report predicts that the greater convenience of B2B eCommerce over traditional invoicing will be a significant driver of this growth. To capitalize, card providers must offer cardholder rewards, such as cashback or reward points, for using cards at partnered B2B eCommerce sites.