ECB Bets Big on AI: Portuguese Startup to Guard Digital Euro From Fraudsters

The European Central Bank has placed a hefty wager on artificial intelligence, handing Portuguese firm Feedzai a contract worth up to €237 million to safeguard the upcoming digital euro from fraud.

According to Reuters, the deal spans four years and ropes in PwC as a subcontractor. Their mission?

Build AI models that flag dodgy transactions by comparing them against each user’s behavioral patterns.

It’s a bold move, and let’s be real—it has to be. Cash is on the decline, card payments still rely heavily on giants like Visa and Mastercard, and Europe has long been itching for more autonomy.

As The Financial Times reported earlier this week, the ECB views the digital euro as a cornerstone of independence, especially with U.S. stablecoins muscling into the payments space.

Fraud detection isn’t just some nice add-on, either—it’s the kind of thing that can make or break public trust.

Consider how India is already preparing an AI-powered Digital Payments Intelligence Platform to police risky transactions in real time.

If Europe wants its citizens to embrace a brand-new central bank currency, robust protection against scams is non-negotiable.

Meanwhile, corporate money is rushing toward AI-powered finance at breakneck speed. Just days ago, Riverwood Capital invested $180 million in AppZen, a company automating expense audits and compliance.

It’s a reminder that banks and regulators aren’t the only ones betting the farm on algorithms.

Of course, I can’t help but wonder—what happens when the machines start making calls about what’s “suspicious”?

We’ve all had a perfectly normal transaction flagged as “unusual” by some clunky system. Multiply that by millions of Europeans and, well, you can imagine the headaches.

Still, Feedzai already processes trillions in payments annually, so maybe they’re better equipped than most.

There’s something almost cinematic about this: central bankers, regulators, AI startups, all scrambling to script the future of money before fraudsters get their hands on it. The stakes?

Nothing less than the credibility of Europe’s biggest monetary experiment in decades. And in my gut, I feel this is just the opening act.

The real drama begins when that digital euro finally hits the wallets of ordinary people.