Unit21, an USA based risk and compliance infrastructure company, informed about its $45 million Series C funding led by Tiger Global and South Park Commonn. 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.

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 launched the Fintech Fraud DAO, which enables fintechs to pool and share data to help identify fraud before it proliferates. Unit21 is thrilled 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.

“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.”

said Trisha Kothari, Co-founder and CEO of Unit21.

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.

Featured image credit: Edited from freepik.