Unit21, the risk and compliance infrastructure company, is pleased to share its $45 million Series C funding led by Tiger Global and South Park Commons in 2022.
The funding has “supported the growth of the Fintech Fraud DAO consortium, which is experiencing a surge in participation and now covers more than 10% of adult consumer transactions in the U.S.”
Unit21 is also pleased “to introduce the first-ever ‘Fraud Fighters Manual,’ a book developed in collaboration with fintech leaders from Brex, Mercury, Lithic, and Treasury Prime that shares insights and lessons to prevent fraud.”
Financial fraud is exploding “as a lucrative career for bad actors. Consumer losses due to fraud jumped 4.6 times in four years, from $1.9 billion in 2019 to $8.8 billion in 2022, according to the Federal Trade Commission.”
With traditional fraud detection methods no longer adequate, Unit21 and its partners are helping “lead the pivot toward smarter, more proactive fraud prevention methods.”
At its best, fraud prevention is “a collective effort, requiring the collaboration of fraud and compliance professionals across the industry.”
Unit21 is developing the risk and compliance infrastructure “to empower its partners with the tools to detect, halt, and update their systems to combat fraud and money laundering rapidly and effectively.”
The additional funding is being used “to support the Company’s collaborative approach to address these growing threats.”
Last fall, Unit21 had “launched the Fintech Fraud DAO, which enables fintechs to pool and share data to help identify fraud before it proliferates.”
Unit21 is pleased about “the DAO’s early success.”
Activity on the platform, whose members “include Drivewealth, Uphold and Gusto, now monitors more than 10% of adult consumer transactions in the U.S.”
Trisha Kothari, Co-founder and CEO of Unit21, said:
“Our mission is to champion fraud prevention over detection. The evolution of fraud calls for an evolution in our approach and must be achieved through collaboration. With the unwavering support of our partners and customers, and the backing of our investors, we’re eager to spearhead the fight against fraud and money laundering, striving to make the financial world a safer place for all through our shared commitment to the cause.”
Unit21’s infrastructure is being adopted quickly.
In 2022, the Company helped clients “monitor a total of 4.8 billion transactions, representing $693 billion in value, an increase of 5.2 times from the previous year.”
Meanwhile, the Company “handled 16,000 suspicious activity reports representing $8.9 billion in value.”
This resulted in “thwarting fraud attempts valued at more than $764 million, an increase of 3.4 times from the previous year. Unit21 believes these increases reflect the massive challenges the community faces and the importance of adopting a collaborative approach.”
The Company is also announcing “the publication of the ‘Fraud Fighters Manual’, which is part of its pursuit to arm risk and compliance experts with the necessary knowledge and tools to counter fraud.”
The “Fraud Fighters Manual” is co-authored “by fraud and compliance experts from Brex, Mercury, Treasury Prime, Unit21, and Lithic and provides the first-of-its-kind peek into the minds of practitioners combating fraud daily. “