In the first of three special episodes recorded at Nacha’s Smarter Faster Payments in San Diego, produced in partnership with LSEG Risk Intelligence, we explore the human, operational and technological forces reshaping payments in 2026. Host Graham Barrett speaks with six leaders across fraud prevention, real‑time payments, digital assets, B2B innovation and treasury to understand how the industry is adapting to rising threats, shifting customer expectations and the acceleration of new rails. His guests were: 1/ Dal Sahota, Global Director, Trusted Payments, LSEG Risk Intelligence 2/ Kevin Olsen, Senior Vice President, Payments Solutions, Pidgin 3/ Jessica Cheney, VP of Banking Solutions and Growth, Bottomline 4/ Lee-Ann Perkins, Assistant Treasurer, Senior Director, Ankura Consulting Group 5/ Nick Stanescu, Executive Vice President and Chief FedNow Executive, Federal Reserve Financial Services 6/ Alan Ng, Managing Director, Payments, Accenture Dal Sahota, Global Director of Trusted Payments at LSEG Risk Intelligence, opens the episode with insights from LSEG’s new global fraud survey, revealing that 97% of victims change their behaviour after being defrauded, and over half report lasting emotional impact. Dal discusses why fraud must be tackled as a network problem, not in organisational silos, and how LSEG’s Global Account Verification is evolving to meet cross‑border risk and customer demand. Kevin Olsen, Senior Vice President of Payments Solutions at Pidgin breaks down what agentic AI really means in payments, how autonomous agents could initiate purchases or negotiate on a consumer’s behalf, and why education and “crawl‑walk‑run” adoption are essential to avoid eroding trust. Kevin also highlights the growing intersection between AI agents, smart contracts and stablecoin risk. Jessica L. Cheney, VP of Product Management & Strategic Solutions at Bottomline, explains how digital natives are rewriting B2B payment expectations, prioritising visibility, confirmation and experience over raw speed. She discusses the GENIUS Act’s impact on digital assets, the slow but steady legitimisation of blockchain‑based rails, and why layered fraud defences must move earlier in the payment lifecycle. Lee‑Ann Perkins, Assistant Treasurer and Senior Director at Ankura Consulting Group, brings a corporate treasury perspective, exploring how FIs and corporates are more aligned than ever on real‑time visibility, operational resilience and fraud prevention. She highlights the cultural and process shifts required to modernise treasury in a faster‑payments world. Nick Stanescu, Executive Vice President and Chief FedNow Executive at Federal Reserve Financial Services, shares a real‑time payments view from the Fed, discussing adoption trends, industry readiness, and how FedNow is shaping the future of instant settlement, liquidity management and fraud controls across the U.S. ecosystem. Alan Ng, Managing Director of Payments at Accenture, closes the episode with a strategic lens on the global payments landscape, from the rise of alternative rails and tokenised value to the operational realities of scaling AI responsibly. Alan outlines where banks and corporates should focus next to stay competitive amid rapid change. A wide‑ranging, insight‑rich episode that captures the urgency, complexity and opportunity defining the next chapter of smarter, faster and safer payments. Dal Sahota Global Director of Trusted Payments at LSEG Risk Intelligence with Dal Sahota, LSEG Risk Intelligence Dal Sahota, LSEG Risk Intelligence returns to the podcast from Nacha Smarter Faster Payments to discuss the company’s latest global fraud survey and the growing human impact of financial crime. Sahota explains that 97% of survey respondents say they change the way they make payments after becoming victims of fraud, becoming more cautious and conducting greater due diligence before transacting. He also highlights the emotional toll, with more than half of respondents reporting feelings of anxiety, anger and a loss of trust following a fraud event. Sahota argues that the payments industry still tackles fraud too often in silos, allowing fraudsters to exploit weaknesses between organisations and sectors. He explains how artificial intelligence is now helping criminals scale scams faster and at lower cost, making collaboration and data sharing increasingly important. The discussion also covers the progress of LSEG Risk Intelligence’s Global Account Verification solution, launched in 2024. Sahota outlines strong customer adoption across banks, fintechs, PSPs and multinational corporates, as well as the evolution of the product from API-only access to a web-based platform with additional functionality such as batch verification. Cross-border fraud risks and the rise of new payment methods are another major theme. Sahota reflects on the growing use of stablecoins and digital wallets for international value movement, warning that fraudsters are already targeting vulnerabilities in these emerging ecosystems. The conversation concludes with a look at how organisations operating internationally should respond. Sahota advocates a layered fraud prevention strategy focused on verifying entities, transactions and behavioural patterns simultaneously, while continuing to invest heavily in cybersecurity, privacy and rapid product innovation. Kevin Olsen, Senior Vice President of Payments, Innovation and Strategy at Pidgin with Kevin Olsen, Pidgin Kevin Olsen, Pidgin joins the podcast to unpack the growing role of agentic AI in payments and the emerging risks surrounding automation. Olsen explains that agentic AI is often overcomplicated, describing it instead as software agents designed to carry out specific tasks on behalf of users. He uses the example of a smart refrigerator automatically reordering groceries, comparing prices and making payments without human intervention. While the concept offers convenience, Olsen warns that the technology introduces significant trust and security concerns. Much depends on how the AI agent is programmed, who controls it and whether users provide clear enough instructions. He argues that compromised or maliciously configured agents could become the next major avenue for payment fraud. The discussion explores whether consumers are ready to allow AI systems to make financial decisions independently. Olsen believes the industry must adopt a “crawl, walk, run” approach, starting with simple, low-risk transactions before moving towards more advanced autonomous payments. Fraud prevention remains a central theme throughout the conversation. Olsen highlights the growing importance of education, both for consumers and financial institutions, and praises payment applications that proactively warn users about common scams during the payment journey. Olsen reflects on the emotional impact fraud can have, particularly feelings of embarrassment and shame among elderly victims who may be reluctant to speak openly about their experiences. Ultimately, the discussion paints a balanced picture of AI in payments – one filled with enormous potential, but also significant responsibility for providers, banks and consumers alike. Jessica Cheney, VP of Banking Solutions and Growth at Bottomline with Jessica Cheney, Bottomline Jessica Cheney, Bottomline, joins the podcast to discuss how digital-native expectations are reshaping the future of B2B payments. Drawing on a personal story about visiting Starbucks with her daughter, Cheney explains how younger generations approach payments and commerce very differently. Rather than simply focusing on speed, she argues that today’s users increasingly value the overall experience surrounding a transaction. Cheney references Bottomline’s Digital Native Index survey, which explores shifting attitudes towards payments. The findings suggest that businesses may be solving for the wrong problem by concentrating solely on faster payments. Instead, users increasingly expect transparency and reassurance throughout the payment lifecycle. Cheney believes the legislation has helped move blockchain discussions away from fringe cryptocurrency debates towards practical, real-world applications. Cross-border payments, FX management and alternative payment rails are all areas where she sees growing opportunity. Fraud prevention is another major focus. Cheney stresses that faster payments do not need to result in faster fraud, provided organisations implement layered controls and move fraud prevention earlier in the payment lifecycle. Lee-Ann Perkins, Assistant Treasurer and Senior Director at Ankura Consulting Group with Lee-Ann Perkins, Ankura Consulting Group Lee-Ann Perkins, Ankura Consulting Group, joins the podcast to discuss the relationship between corporates and financial institutions, as well as the evolving fraud and payments landscape. Perkins explains that despite perceptions that corporates and banks operate very differently, both sides ultimately face many of the same pressures. She highlights shared challenges around compliance, modernisation, customer expectations and the need to maintain secure payment environments. The discussion explores the balance between payment efficiency and security. Perkins argues that organisations should not view convenience and protection as opposing priorities, insisting that businesses must deliver both secure and seamless payment experiences simultaneously. Fraud remains a growing concern. Reflecting on more than two decades in treasury, Perkins describes how fraud has evolved from cheque and invoice scams into increasingly sophisticated AI-driven attacks that can be difficult to distinguish from legitimate communications. The conversation also covers the ongoing challenges surrounding cross-border payments. Perkins highlights the complexities created by varying regulations, settlement speeds, costs and currency requirements across different markets. Nick Stanescu, Executive Vice President and Chief FedNow Executive at Federal Reserve Financial Services with Nick Stanescu, Federal Reserve Financial Services Nick Stanescu, Federal Reserve Financial Services, returns to the podcast to provide an update on the rapid growth of the FedNow instant payments service. Stanescu reveals that FedNow now has more than 700 participating institutions and processes over $3 billion in payment value each day. He reflects on the speed of adoption, describing the growth of the network and transaction volumes as both encouraging and exciting. A major focus of the discussion is the launch of FedNow’s latest fraud prevention capability, the Network Intelligence API, designed to help financial institutions better manage fraud risk in real time. Stanescu also explores the concept of nested relationships within instant payments ecosystems. Comparing payments infrastructure to the airline industry, he explains how a wide network of organisations must work together behind the scenes to deliver seamless consumer experiences. The episode addresses some of the perceived barriers to instant payment adoption, including the belief that faster payments automatically lead to faster fraud. Stanescu strongly challenges this assumption, arguing that instant payment systems actually offer sophisticated controls that can help detect and prevent fraudulent activity. Throughout the interview, Stanescu emphasises the importance of continuous innovation, regular feature releases and ongoing collaboration with industry participants to support the future growth of instant payments in the United States. Alan Ng, Managing Director of Payments at Accenture with Alan Ng, Payments Accenture Alan Ng, Accenture joins the podcast to discuss how artificial intelligence is reshaping payments, fraud prevention and customer experience. Ng begins by pointing out that AI has existed for decades, although many people still view it as an entirely new technology. He explains that AI is already deeply embedded within payments infrastructure, particularly in areas such as fraud detection and sanctions screening. However, Ng believes the industry is only at the beginning of AI’s wider transformation. He argues that the next major phase will involve banks using AI not only for operational efficiency, but also to drive product innovation and enhance customer experiences. Fraud remains one of the biggest concerns. Ng discusses the rise of authorised push payment scams and warns that criminals are increasingly using AI themselves to scale fraud attacks and create more convincing scams. He also examines the challenge of false positives in fraud monitoring, describing inefficiencies across many institutions. Ng suggests that AI-powered chatbots and real-time payment interventions could help customers identify suspicious transactions before money is transferred. Looking ahead, Ng predicts that both money and payments will become increasingly programmable, embedded and intelligent. He points to stablecoins, digital currencies and generative AI as technologies likely to fundamentally reshape the payments ecosystem over the coming years. Summary Across the discussions at Nacha’s Smarter Faster Payments, common themes emerge around fraud prevention, customer trust, faster payments and the growing importance of collaboration and data sharing. The guests examine the rise of agentic AI, stablecoins and real-time payment systems, while also warning that fraudsters are becoming more sophisticated through the use of AI and emerging technologies. Many argue that the future of payments will depend not just on speed, but on delivering secure, transparent and user-friendly experiences that solve genuine customer problems. In partnership with PRCA members receive 10 CPD points for listening to this podcast if they log it on the CPD programme. View episode
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