Globally, financial fraud, particularly that involving artificial intelligence, poses a significant challenge. Which sectors are most vulnerable?
Instant payments and solutions against instant fraud and money laundering will be the focus of DIGI PAY, the only conference dedicated to secure and accessible digital payments. The event will take place on October 7th at Inter Expo Center in Sofia.
For members of the British –Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce (BBCC), the organisors have prepared a special offer: a 15% discount with code: 2025DIGIPAYBBCC15 until October 4.
“2025 will be a year of accelerated digitalization and intensified regulations in the payment sector,” announced Goran Angelov, Founder and CEO of IBS Bulgaria and a member of the conference’s Advisory Board, speaking exclusively for DIGI PAY. Leading companies in the sector will present real-world fraud cases and their resolutions.
This year will also bring new challenges for cybersecurity. Risks will primarily stem from social engineering, fraudulent financial intermediaries, and money laundering schemes involving crypto assets. With the advent of new technologies, fraudsters are becoming increasingly creative, utilizing deepfake tools, AI-generated voices, and sophisticated cyberattacks. All of this will be combined with falsified digital identities.
New Regulations for Crypto Assets, Payments, and AI Combating Fraud
Furthermore, the integration of new regulations like MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets) and DORA (Digital Operational Resilience Act) will shape the future of payment ecosystems. “For businesses, this means more requirements, but these will make the financial ecosystem more resilient and pave the way for more innovative services,” commented the founder of IBS Bulgaria, which recently opened an office in Dubai.
Many frauds occur with crypto, and an even greater number of compromised payments are linked to money laundering via crypto. The best specialists and experts in Europe will explain how the new regulations, expected to be published this autumn, will succeed in regulating the market and establishing rules to halt the illicit outflow of funds. Among them will be Saskia Rietbroek, Executive Director and Founder of the Association of Certified Sanctions Specialists (ACSS). Saskia is a Certified Sanctions Specialist (CSS) and an industry leader on financial crime topics, with over 20 years of experience in sanctions/AML across the USA, Latin America, and Europe.
The Payment Services Directive (PSR1/PSD3) will introduce new requirements for payment security and facilitate the transition from open banking to open finance. The Digital Identification Regulation (eIDAS 2.0) will also play a crucial role, simplifying access to financial services through secure electronic identification.
Globally, financial fraud perpetrated with artificial intelligence, as well as Authorized Push Payments (APP) Fraud—where the victim is misled into making a payment to an account controlled by a fraudster, believing they are paying a legitimate recipient—pose significant challenges. This is why trends in preventing these frauds necessitate the use of artificial intelligence, explained Albena Petkova from BORICA’s “Financial Fraud Prevention Services” Directorate and a member of DIGI PAY’s Advisory Board.
Three Sectors to Watch with Online Payments
Fintech and financial services companies must be particularly cautious during payment processing. “Regulators are pursuing a consistent policy of expanding sectoral scope while becoming increasingly specific about requirements for customer authentication, transaction monitoring, and responsibility for financial fraud prevention,” Petkova elaborated.
The e-commerce business is the second key sector that needs to act cautiously with digital payments. “Merchants will need to invest in dynamic fraud detection systems and automated mechanisms for blocking suspicious payments. We expect growth in ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ (BNPL) services, which will require better analysis of customer creditworthiness on one hand, and the ability to identify fake profiles on the other,” Petkova believes.
According to her, tourism is another large sector that needs to be careful with online payments. “Hotel reservations and airline tickets have traditionally been among the most frequently attacked sectors by cybercriminals, through the use of stolen cards and falsely disputed transactions,” Petkova reminded. This will necessitate more sophisticated customer verification systems, including ID verification and biometric checks. Risk-based authentication will become key to preventing fraud in large purchases.
Independent Instant Payments in Europe
Another panel at the conference will address instant and international payments, driven by the desire to achieve an independent European payment system. This will include Bizum, the largest instant payment application in the EU with 27 million users. The European Payments Initiative (EPI), a platform aiming to be the unified payment platform for Europe, will also join live.
Several interesting debates will capture the audience’s attention, including whether instant payments will displace card payments and if the new digital identity wallet will change the payment sector.
Digi Pay Partners
This year’s event partners include the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE Bulgaria), the Bulgarian Fintech Association, the Bulgarian E-commerce Association, the Bulgarian Association of Software Companies, the British-Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce (BBCC), the European Digital Finance Association (EDFA), and the Association of Certified Sanctions Specialists (ACSS). Each year, the B2B conference attracts more partners and visitors, with its last seventh edition reaching over 330 professionals in person and 150 online.
According to preliminary information, the conference will be opened by John Berrigan, Director-General of the Directorate-General for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union (DG FISMA), European Commission.
See who the speakers are. The full program will be available very soon at: https://digipay.bg/.