Fraud and underwriting
Underwriting models and data, credit scores, fraud and anti-money-laundering work.
15 items in 10 issues, Oct 25, 2026 to Nov 9, 2026, newest first. Each item links to the issue it ran in, where its sources are listed.
Related: Regulation and policyRates and the FedAI and agentic commercePayments and networksDeals and fundingCredit trendsBuy now, pay laterBlock (Afterpay, Cash App)
November 2026
- Mon, Nov 9 · Policy & enforcement
CoinFlip. California's Business and Consumer Services Agency demanded that crypto ATM operator CoinFlip pay $4.8 million in restitution to scam victims. The agency said the company failed to detect, prevent, report and mitigate suspicious activity over five years. The agency, led by former CFPB Director Rohit Chopra, also said consumers can no longer rely on federal regulators for protection.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Nov 8 · Company spotlight: Affirm
Underwriting model. Affirm describes its new transformer-based underwriting model as "quite similar to" the systems behind popular large language models. It said the model's first version "delivered an incremental 3.4% of end-to-end conversion via significantly higher credit approvals, while keeping credit losses flat." On the call, CEO Max Levchin said that means "approving probably two, three points more people" with essentially no incremental loss.
Read in the issue → - Sat, Nov 7 · Opening balance
Carried over. Sen. Elizabeth Warren had asked the Justice Department to open a criminal probe of Bank of America over its $1.21 billion anti-money laundering penalty, with a reply requested by Nov. 12. The Fed could seek a rehearing within 45 days after the Eighth Circuit vacated its 21-cent debit interchange cap on Oct. 26, and the FTC and eight states had sued Toast over hidden fees.
Read in the issue → - Sat, Nov 7 · Charges
Block's settlement. Block reached a tentative agreement to pay $764 million, net of $200 million in credit for earlier settlements, to resolve Justice Department charges over Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering failures. The charges are deferred for three years, and the company warned that losses could exceed what it has set aside.
Read in the issue → - Thu, Nov 5 · The big story: Block settles with the DOJ
The deal. Block will pay $764 million to settle Justice Department charges over Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering failures, net of $200 million in credit for earlier settlements, under a $964 million deal disclosed in its quarterly filing. Charges are deferred for three years and dropped if Block complies, and the company warned that losses could exceed the amount it has set aside.
Read in the issue → - Thu, Nov 5 · BNPL & lending
Signs of strain. A NerdWallet-Harris poll found 38% of Americans plan to use BNPL this holiday season, and 38% of those expect to pay late. TransUnion began sharing limited BNPL data with one lender in October, an early step toward installment loans showing up in underwriting.
Read in the issue → - Thu, Nov 5 · Policy & enforcement
OCC on AI. The OCC issued a supervisory framework for bank use of super intelligence, saying it is not a separate risk category and does not need its own risk appetite. Expectations stay technology-neutral, so banks can fold AI underwriting and fraud tools into existing model risk programs.
Read in the issue → - Wed, Nov 4 · Worth a read
Wise and AML. Jason Mikula's Fintech Business Weekly argues growth-first fintechs push compliance costs onto customers, drawing on Wise restricting his and other EU businesses' accounts without notice, which he ties to anti-money laundering remediation. It also covers the Eighth Circuit ruling against the Fed's debit fee cap.
Read in the issue → - Mon, Nov 2 · Policy & enforcement
BofA AML. Sen. Warren asked Attorney General Blanche last Thursday to open a criminal probe of Bank of America and its executives, calling the $1.21B FinCEN, OCC and OFAC penalty "a slap on the wrist." The bank admitted willfully failing to report over $5B in suspicious activity from 2019 to 2023; she wants an answer by Nov 12.
Read in the issue → - Mon, Nov 2 · Cards & payments
AI agents. Plaid payments head Brian Dammeir says AI shopping agents could shift spending toward bank payments, even as five of the largest U.S. banks, including JPMorgan Chase and Citi, block outside AI agents from customer accounts over fraud and liability concerns.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Nov 1 · The week ahead
Upstart, Oportun. Both report Tue Nov 3: reads on AI underwriting and near-prime installment credit quality.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Nov 1 · Also this week
Amex risk chief. Amex named Jodi Richard, U.S. Bank's chief risk officer since 2018, as chief risk officer and head of global risk and compliance, effective Jan 25, 2027, reporting to CEO Stephen Squeri. It follows a $350M civil penalty and Fed and OCC actions this month over anti-money-laundering failures; current CRO Doug Tabish moves to run enterprise shared services.
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October 2026
- Sat, Oct 31 · Fintech & funding
Overwatch Data. Raised a $15M Series A led by Mouro Capital, with Visa Ventures and Capital One Ventures investing strategically, for AI-driven fraud and risk intelligence.
Read in the issue → - Mon, Oct 26 · The big story: EU credit rules for Klarna & PayPal (CCD2)
How providers are preparing. Klarna has been reissuing consumer credit agreements ahead of the deadline, including for recurring and subscription charges. Expect more declines at the margin, more bank-account and open-banking data in underwriting, and pressure on approval rates, conversion and holiday-season volumes. That lands just as Black Friday falls a week after go-live.
Read in the issue → - Sun, Oct 25 · Earnings
American Express. Q3 EPS was $4.68 (vs $4.47 est. and $4.14 a year ago) on revenue of $20.06B. FY26 EPS guidance is now $17.60-17.90. Amex plans to cut ~5% of its workforce (~3,900 roles, $336M charge) to "reduce layers." Separately, the Fed and OCC fined it $350M over AML failures, with no change to guidance (American Banker, Oct 23).
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