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Visa on Monday said it is acquiring fraud detection startup BioCatch for $2.4 billion in cash, expanding the payment giant’s push into cybersecurity as banks confront a surge in artificial intelligence-powered scams and account takeovers.
Under the deal, Visa will get BioCatch’s behavioral biometrics platform, which analyzes data including keystroke timing, touch screen pressure and other signals to distinguish real users from scammers and bots. Visa said it is acquiring the firm from London-based private equity firm Permira and other investors.
The acquisition underscores how payments companies are racing to strengthen fraud defenses as generative AI makes attacks cheaper, faster and more convincing. Visa estimates that scams and account takeovers cost the global economy more than $1 trillion annually.
It is also the latest move by Visa to expand its value-added services business, which sells…
