Our Trust Policies

CurrencyFair Fraud Victim Response Guide

If you suspect that you have become a victim of fraud, including Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud, immediately contact your bank to request a transaction recall and submit a fraud report to CurrencyFair’s customer support team via email. 

Provide a bank statement showing the disputed transaction, third-party correspondence, and any police report (e.g., filed with a police force in your jurisdiction). Secure your account by resetting passwords and avoid further contact with suspected fraudsters.

CurrencyFair's Response Process

1. Initial Alert Fraud-related cases may begin when we receive a report from a customer or an alert from our banking partners or transaction monitoring systems. These alerts typically relate to unauthorized transactions, phishing attempts, or unusual account activity. Once we’re alerted, our Fraud team logs the case immediately.

2. Investigation Our team conducts an initial review to assess whether the reported activity warrants escalation. This includes verifying customer identity, checking login history, reviewing IP addresses, and scanning for suspicious patterns (e.g., rapid fund transfers, unusual device/browser behaviour). If the report is deemed credible, we move the case into a formal investigation process.

3. Funds Verification We check if the disputed funds are available. If so,  the money will be returned to your originating account within one business day and the transaction will be marked as "Fraud recall accepted". If funds are unavailable, the status becomes "Fraud recall declined".

4. Account Review We lock your account for anti-money laundering (AML) checks, review your transaction history/KYC documents, and coordinate with banking partners. If fraud is confirmed, we apply additional locks (e.g., "Confirmed Fraud") and file a Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) with Compliance.

5. Partial/Exchanged Funds If funds were partially spent or converted, we reverse exchanges to the original currency, deduct remaining balances, and block withdrawals until Compliance approves the recall.

6. Reporting & Recovery CurrencyFair reports fraud periodically to the regulators (the Central Bank of Ireland) and partners (e.g. Moorwand Ltd) and collaborates with the banking partners to trace funds. Suspected fraud cases may be reported to Police. Fraud cases are also periodically reported internally to the Executive Risk Committee.

7. Customer Updates You’ll receive real-time case updates via email. If CurrencyFair’s systems contributed to the loss, Compliance oversees restitution. For unresolved cases, legal counsel may be required.

This process aligns with CurrencyFair’s global fraud management framework, prioritising speed, transparency, and regulatory compliance.

Authorised Push Payment Fraud (APP) (Ireland and UK)

Authorised push payment fraud happens when you are tricked by a criminal into sending money by bank payment or other funds transfer to an account that they control and which you do not. You can make a payment through online and mobile banking, at your branch, or by telephone banking.

Common types of APP fraud include:

• purchase fraud, where criminals pretend to sell things that don’t exist.

• impersonation fraud, where criminals claim to be someone from a bank, the police or another trusted organisation to steal money.

• investment fraud, where you’re convinced to move your money into a fictitious fund or to pay for what later turns out to be a fake investment.

• romance fraud, when criminals use a fake dating profile to start a relationship with you and then ask for money.

• invoice fraud, where fraudsters send false invoices.

Remember, fraud affects people from all walks of life, and you should never be embarrassed if you have been scammed.

How to protect yourself from APP fraud (Ireland and UK)

• Take a moment to stop and think before parting with your money or personal information. It could keep you safe.

• Ask yourself, could it be fake? It’s ok to reject, refuse or ignore any requests. Only criminals will try to rush or panic you.

• Do your research and be suspicious of any too-good-to-be-true offers or prices.

• Remember, neither us, any bank or the police will ever ask you to transfer money to a safe account.

• If you’re unsure or are suspicious, then talk to a trusted friend or family member before making your payment.

• When you are making a payment:

  • Always follow any warnings from us or your bank.

  • We might ask you extra questions about a payment. This is to help keep you safe. Always answer these questions truthfully. If someone is asking you to lie or telling you what to say to us, then it’ll be a scam.

Reimbursement of APP fraud (UK)

Your APP fraud case will be considered and the loss reimbursed according to the rules issued by the UK Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) if the transaction was made after 7th October 2024 and when the following conditions are met: 

1. The Payment was Executed through Faster Payments

2. The Payment was Authorised by the consumer of the sending payment service provider

3. The Payment was Executed by the payment service provider in the UK

4. The Payment is received in a relevant account in the UK that is not controlled by the consumer

5. The Payment is not to the recipient the consumer intended or is not for the purpose the consumer intended

The Consumer Standard of Caution (UK)

You should always be careful and cautious when making payments. This means meeting the Consumer Standard of Caution issued by the UK PSR:

• You need to follow any advice or warnings provided by your bank or other payment service provider and law enforcement. This may include advice on how to check that your payment is genuine, or an alert to advise that they think it may be fraud. Your payment service provider and law enforcement will never ask you to transfer money to protect yourself from fraud.

• You must report the fraud as soon as you can, and no more than 13 months after the last fraudulent payment was made.

• Your payment service provider may ask you for additional information about your claim. You need to make sure you respond to these requests.

• Once you have made a claim, your payment service provider may ask you to report the details of the fraud to the police, or they may offer to do this on your behalf. You should consent to these steps being taken where possible and reasonable.

• Your payment service provider does not have to reimburse money lost in an APP fraud if you have shown a significant degree of carelessness (known as ‘gross negligence’) when making a payment. This would mean you would not have met the Consumer Standard of Caution.

The information contained in this Fraud process is for general guidance and is intended to enhance awareness and vigilance regarding fraud process with CurrencyFair