Business Payments Fraud Remains Top Concern Among B2Bs

Inflation may be inescapable but research shows businesses are actually more worried about fraud.

According to the “B2B Payments Fraud Tracker,” from PYMNTS and nsKnox, worries about payments fraud was the number one concern for businesses.

While surprising, this top-of-mind concern is well-founded, given that fraud against businesses rose by more than 134% in Q1 and affected 98% of business-to-business (B2B) firms — a far greater level of exposure than the more closely followed consumer rates.

The costs of B2B fraud also run deeper than just theft, as the study found that this fear factor caused 54% of B2B businesses to intentionally turn down and not onboard a new client at least once last year due to concerns over potential attacks.

Contrary to conventional wisdom, big companies — despite all their capital and access to tech — actually fared worse than their smaller rivals when it comes to being hit by payments fraud.

Then there is the issue of payments risk, the foremost B2B concern that also carries an evolving threat of sorts.

According to Nithai Barzam, chief operating officer of B2B anti-fraud FinTech nsKnox, new categories of payments are also opening up new risk typologies.

“Everybody talks about faster, real-time immediate payments,” Barzam said. “This is great to be able to pay quickly, and definitely great to receive money quickly, but it also opens the door for what’s known as ‘faster fraud’ and closes the window on the time to confirm compliance within anti-money laundering regulations and anti-terror financing regulations.”

On the other side, he said, fraud rings are running business-like operations that invest heavily in technology and develop new processes to conceal or fake identity and avoid detection.

“They’ll try to figure out what makes sense and what to invest in,” he cautioned.

The Response

Clearly, the problem is vast and deep and deserving of a sizable response that is seeing many businesses launch new initiatives.

To that point, PYMNTS research shows that 71% of organizations plan to implement new automated digital solutions for fraud prevention when managing business payments. At the same time, less than one-third of businesses said they were satisfied with their current B2B identity verification and fraud prevention solutions, suggesting an uptick in investment is likely to follow given the outsized worries that accompany them.

Depending on the business and the nature of the threats, different responses are likely to be taken to the detect criminal activity.

In the case of money laundering attempts, for example, where a seemingly honest business relationship could be a front for something far more nefarious, implementing AI-driven fraud detection tools to identify and block potentially fraudulent business transactions is one response.

These automated fraud-detection tools use AI to analyze transactions for potential risk factors. When used during onboarding or as a screening tool in B2B payments management, they can help businesses thwart potential attacks before they impact user experience.

For all PYMNTS B2B coverage, subscribe to the daily B2B Newsletter.

Flying Cars Can Wait: CES Shows Future Is Robots That Cool Your Soup, Pick Up Socks

AI Me gadget from CES 2025

What do the movies “Blade Runner,” “2001: A Space Odyssey,” “Back to the Future Part II” and Spike Jonze’s “Her” all have in common?

These science fiction movies, each depicting various versions of a future full of fantastic technologies, all take place in the year 2025 or earlier.

Though some of the high-tech gadgets and futuristic innovations seen in these films, such as hoverboards and flying cars, haven’t quite materialized in everyday life, they have sparked imagination and set the stage for the very real innovations. As the dozens of groundbreaking products and wacky gadgets that debuted at the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this week reveal, the future is certainly now.

CES, after all, rarely disappoints when it comes to providing a first-look at some truly strange gadgets that might just represent the ultimate showcase of tomorrow’s technology.

From artificial intelligence (AI) being embedded into everything and smarter than ever home devices, to autonomous robotic companions and wearable tech that both bends and blends reality, many of the inventions that once seemed out of reach in Hollywood films are now being unveiled on the convention floor.

See also: The Five Not-So-Obvious Things That Will Change the Digital Economy in 2025

Could Smart Home Robots Revolutionize Daily Life?

It’s becoming clear that today’s technological advancements are increasingly bridging the gap between what was once imagined and what’s now becoming real.

For example, smart home robots are no longer a futuristic fantasy — they are being positioned as potentially indispensable components of modern households.

CES 2025 saw the debut of the Roborock Saros Z70, a robot vacuum with a telescopic, five-axis arm. Rosey the Robot from “The Jetsons” has nothing on this little gadget, which its maker describes as “a mechanical arm that sees and thinks,” and is able to pick up and put away items like socks, shoes, tissues and more.

For more serious household tasks, the SwitchBot Multitasking Household Robot K20+ Pro was also unveiled at CES 2025. “Whether it’s delivering objects, vacuuming, monitoring pets, purifying the air, providing home security, or even mobilizing smart tablets, the K20+ Pro juggles household management with ease … from delivering food and drinks to carrying small packages,” said a company release.

Read more: Training Robots Using Video Games Could Democratize Warehouse Automation

The K20+ Pro’s core is designed for customization and flexibility, serving as a modular foundation that allows users to create, adapt, and personalize the robot for a wide variety of innovative applications, and can connect with third-party smart devices like Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri, ensuring integration into any smart home ecosystem.

Elsewhere, TCL premiered its “AI Me” (Amy) concept companion robot, complete with animated eyes, autonomous movement and an AI-powered camera on its head; while Dreame showcased its X50 Ultra robot vacuum that has legs to avoid obstacles.

As smart home technology continues to evolve, the integration of robots designed to assist in daily activities could significantly alter how we interact with our homes, manage tasks and even shape the future of work.

TomBot, for example, debuted an emotional robotic lap dog, Jennie, an AI robot therapy dog designed to keep seniors company. On the more playful side of things, Tokyo robotics startup Yukai Engineering introduced the Nékojita FuFu, a portable cat-shaped robot that can blow air to cool hot food or drinks.

It wasn’t solely robotics for use at home being showcased at CES. John Deere used the Las Vegas event to reveal its own autonomous agricultural products. The fully autonomous machines were on display from Jan. 7 to 10, and were a bit bigger in size, if equivalently less cute, than the TomBot puppies.

Read more: Google Reportedly Bringing Gemini AI to TV Sets

The Future Is Calling and Consumers Can Answer Anywhere

Behind the strangely futuristic convenience of a robot picking up your laundry and taking out the trash while it vacuums and interfaces with the rest of your household appliances lies a much larger story: the rise of the smart economy.

As CES 2025 showed, augmented reality (AR) glasses are the eye candy of the smart economy. A host of futuristic specs were unveiled, capable of a range of tasks that turn the wearer into a high-tech superhero.

Halliday showcased “the world’s first proactive AI glasses with invisible display,” while freshly debuted Loomos.AI glasses offer a ChatGPT-4o integrated AI assistant.

But other appendages remain up for grabs, and innovative products from smart rings to apps like WowMouse, which allows smartwatch wearers to control devices using just their gestures and fingers, are vying for market share in ways that aim to make daily life more convenient, efficient and secure.