Hawk Adds New Funding Amid Demand for AI-Powered Crime Fighting

Hawk is raising funds to support increasing demand for artificial intelligence (AI)-powered anti-financial crime technology.

The company on Tuesday (June 11) announced the extension of its Series B funding, which brings with it “a substantial increase” in valuation.

According to a news release, the funding will help speed Hawk’s international growth, helping it meet demand for its explainable AI, which lets financial institutions (FIs) increase the effectiveness of their financial crime detection and prevention capabilities and maintain regulatory AML/CFT compliance.

“What is exceptional about Hawk is their ability to deliver innovative technology in a way that is safe and reassuring for enterprises in the financial sector. It’s exciting to see the results they’re delivering and we’re very pleased to be part of their continued growth,” said Maxime Mandin, managing director at BlackFin Capital Partners, which invested in the round.

The Series B (no financial information was provided) is also being backed by new investor Rabo Investments, along with existing investors Sands Capital, DN, Picus and Coalition.

PYMNTS Intelligence has collaborated with Hawk on research into financial crime, including the recent report “Leveraging AI and ML to Thwart Scammers.”

“Even though 4 in 10 FIs are victimized by some kind of authorized fraud, we found overall that the losses are less severe than those brought on other forms of fraud,” PYMNTS wrote last week. “Authorized fraud accounts for just 37% of the total money FIs lose to fraudsters; however, the share of total dollars lost increases with FI size, accounting for 44% of fraud losses for FIs with more than $100 billion in assets under management (AUM).”

The most common type of authorized fraud happens when fraudsters modify payment information or instructions, shifting funds into their own coffers, a type of fraud which accounts for 40% of all authorized fraudulent payments.

The second most common type of authorized fraud, making up 34% of cases, are scams where a fraudster manipulates or tricks an authorized party into making a payment. While they come in second place, these scams account for 14% of all fraudulent transactions for FIs that manage at least $5 billion in assets.

Meanwhile, PYMNTS spoke with Hawk CEO Tobias Schweiger last year about the AI “arms race” between financial institutions and scammers.

“As a financial institution, one has to be aware of that accelerated trend and make sure your organization has enough technology on the good side of the equation to fight back,” he said.

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