Fraud is a reality in the finance industry across the world. At Yoco, our Transaction Monitoring team works relentlessly to protect businesses and empower them to thrive in our secure ecosystem.

Irshaad Moosa, Senior Transaction Monitoring & Chargeback Manager at Yoco, shares insights into how the team achieves this. His role involves monitoring transactions for suspicious activity, managing chargebacks to safeguard businesses, and collaborating with external and internal partners to prevent financial crime.

He shares how the team adapts to new challenges, implements cutting-edge fraud detection systems and other innovations, and coordinates with partners to ensure Yoco remains a safe and enabling partner for over 200,000 businesses across South Africa.

Discovering the fast-paced world of fintech

After a decade working in banking, Irshaad discovered Yoco. He loved the idea of open commerce and empowering business owners.

“What attracted me was Yoco’s spirit and mission of supporting businesses; it resonates with me.”

“I find Yoco’s fast-paced, tech-driven environment invigorating. We’re always pushing forward and focused on staying one step ahead.”

He initially studied marketing and management, and spent years exploring roles in finance, business development and sales before discovering compliance, risk and financial crime:

“I’ve always been drawn to solving complex puzzles, so it felt like a natural fit when I came across financial crime.”

“We work to protect businesses from fraud, but we’re also empowering them to grow in a safe and supportive ecosystem.”

Irshaad’s passion for strategy and analysis helps him tackle challenges that arise in safeguarding businesses in the fintech space.

Managing fraud and risk at Yoco

Yoco’s Transaction Monitoring team is deeply committed to protecting businesses from fraud. In their work around identifying suspicious activity, resolving chargebacks and partnering with banks to block potential threats, they ensure Yoco offers a secure environment.

“We’re a dedicated team of detectives - or, as we call ourselves, the fraud busters.”

The team utilises advanced technology built in-house and extensive industry knowledge to keep ahead of evolving threats.

On average, 462,000 transactions flow through Yoco’s systems daily, with a peak of 1 million transactions per day. All of these require real-time assessment from our systems. Alerts from here lead to identifying suspicious activities.

We have built a robust framework that not only handles high volumes but also actively works to protect our platform and its users. It’s a big job, but it’s all part of our commitment to keeping things secure and seamless for everyone.

“On average, we monitor about 8,333 alerts a month. The powerhouse framework we’ve built is able to handle high volumes as well as actively work to protect our platform and its users.”

Irshaad notes that although the team encounters various complex cases, their quick thinking, real-time access to critical data, precise action and collaborative approach help them prevent and mitigate fraud effectively.

Another key responsibility for the team is handling chargebacks, where they fight on behalf of Yoco’s merchants to dispute any unwarranted claims.

From fraud detection to compliance, the Transaction Monitoring team is committed to staying a step ahead of financial crime.

Enabling businesses with guardrails

The team’s approach is focused on balancing and preventing fraud while enabling businesses to operate with confidence. This approach ensures that Yoco can offer businesses the freedom to focus on their growth since their financial transactions are in safe hands.

By working closely with other Yoco teams, the Transaction Monitoring team succeeds in striking this balance:

“We work with our Data team to update fraud trends in our in-house developed monitoring system, which helps us drive better quality investigations. We are able to rate every transaction that happens on the platform in real-time, with automated flagging.”

The team also collaborates with Customer Support to address flagged transactions, as well as Engineering:

“The Engineering team helps us make rapid system enhancements so that we can respond to emerging threats in real-time.”

Irshaad notes that the autonomy and high responsibility Yoco’s environment offers are useful, as they help them implement solutions quickly.

Staying on top of industry trends

The fraud and risk prevention landscape is ever-evolving. Irshaad says that there’s something new taking place every day, so staying ahead of trends is critical:

“We stay on top by keeping our internal systems and controls up to date and by closely monitoring changes in laws and regulations.”

The Transaction Monitoring team takes an agile, adaptive approach to ensure continuous learning and equipping for new challenges.

They follow and share insights from financial crime thought leaders: “I read a lot around laws, regulations and the latest scams. It’s essential to adapt quickly to industry shifts.”

Irshaad tells us that anti-financial crime certifications are also vital for success in this role. Completing these certifications helps our team provide expertise, stay ahead of trends, and effectively tackle evolving challenges.

The information they uncover is relayed back into Yoco’s fraud monitoring system, and new insights are applied to strengthen internal controls:

“We leverage our technology and work with our data team to identify patterns, ensuring our in-house monitoring systems are responsive and robust.”

The team also works closely with banks and other external partners to establish smooth collaboration to prevent financial crime.

Succeeding in fraud and risk monitoring

Working in financial fraud and risk prevention requires a unique blend of skills. Adaptability and curiosity are key traits among the team.

Working in anti-financial crime and risk prevention requires a unique blend of skills. Since the space evolves so quickly with new schemes emerging all the time, adaptability and curiosity are key traits among the team.

When the team faces complex challenges, Irshaad says that having strong problem-solving skills drives their curiosity to seek solutions.

“You have to be curious, and you can’t take everything at face value.”

Irshaad notes: “A detail-orientated approach is essential because the stakes are high.” In an environment where a single overlooked transaction can have a significant impact, having an eye for precision is crucial.

In the challenging space of financial crime, having a passion for the work is key to succeeding:

“If you’re passionate about your role, you’ll make the most of it. I’m proud to work alongside a bunch of passionate individuals who are committed every day of the year.”

Irshaad emphasises the importance of his favourite Yoco value: master your craft.

“I love to achieve. I’m constantly refining my skills and empowering myself to stay at the top of my game.”

The team’s drive for excellence sustains its success in the face of ever-evolving threats in fraud prevention and risk management.

For more details on how Yoco approaches financial fraud and risk prevention, check out our Fraud Guide.

If you’re detail-oriented, adaptable and analytical, and seeking a challenging role in fraud and risk prevention, keep an eye on our careers page for potential job openings.