I’ve just spent three days in a closed, off-the-record seminar on criminal schemes in European fintech – a deep dive into the most telling cases from 2025.

What struck me most wasn’t “stolen cards” or old-school tricks. It was how productized and infrastructure-aware fraud has become.

This isn’t petty theft anymore. It’s systems design – built to scale.

Here’s the ultra-short map of the dominant patterns:

1) Micro-charge & fake subscription factories Small amounts. Massive volume. Then waves of chargebacks – and a reputational shock for PSPs, acquirers, and merchants.

2) Investment “trust funnels” Ads → “advisor” → pseudo-dashboard → pressure → bigger transfers — often followed by a second trap: “we can recover your money.”

3) APP fraud / authorized push payments The user sends the money themselves – which is why antifraud often sees a “legitimate” transaction until the very last second.

4) Regulator & brand impersonation Trust is sold through words like “authority / compliance / licence” – and it works disturbingly well.

5) Compliance gaps in fast-growing fintechs When product growth outpaces controls, it becomes an opening — not for one scammer, but for organized networks.

Next, I’ll unpack each mechanism using my standard frame: Mechanism → Markers → Move (how it works, how to recognize it, what to do — without panic and without illusions.)

And yes – we’ll do the most important layer separately: the role of AI. Not “AI scam” as a meme, but how AI amplifies scale, personalization, speed – and, most dangerously, believability.

More soon..