AI-Powered Risk Intelligence Embedded into the Authorization Flow
Marqeta, Inc. announced a major enhancement to its Real-Time Decisioning (RTD) capabilities by introducing an artificial intelligence–driven risk score designed to evaluate payment transaction risk at the exact moment authorization decisions are made. The new capability deepens the company’s commitment to enabling smarter fraud prevention by integrating machine learning and predictive analytics directly into its modern card issuing platform. The update reflects the growing need for issuers, fintech companies, and embedded finance providers to balance seamless customer experiences with robust protection against increasingly sophisticated payment fraud. The enhancement ensures that fraud detection becomes a real-time, adaptive process rather than a reactive, post-transaction effort.
Strengthening Real-Time Decisioning Through Machine Learning
The newly introduced risk score expands the intelligence of the RTD solution by embedding advanced machine learning models directly within the transaction authorization workflow. This integration allows businesses to analyze risk at the moment a purchase request occurs, enabling immediate and precise decision-making. The approach moves beyond static rule-based systems by incorporating continuously learning algorithms that refine their assessments based on evolving patterns and behavioral signals. The integration empowers organizations to deploy fraud defenses that scale with transaction volume and complexity while maintaining the speed and reliability required in modern digital payments.
Real-Time Transaction Analysis Using Proprietary Data
A defining aspect of the enhancement is the use of proprietary transaction data collected from card programs operating on the platform. The AI-powered risk score leverages this data to uncover patterns unique to each customer’s ecosystem, rather than relying solely on generic fraud models. By analyzing historical and real-time transaction behavior, the system creates a dynamic risk profile tailored to specific use cases, verticals, and cardholder segments. This level of personalization ensures that fraud detection becomes more accurate and relevant over time, significantly improving the quality of authorization decisions.
Evaluating 300+ Attributes in Milliseconds
The risk scoring system evaluates more than 300 real-time transaction attributes, combining these signals with historical behavioral patterns to determine the likelihood of fraud. These attributes may include transaction location, merchant category, spending velocity, device characteristics, and behavioral anomalies. The platform processes this complex dataset in milliseconds, ensuring that authorization decisions remain instantaneous even while leveraging sophisticated analytics. The ability to evaluate such a broad set of variables allows businesses to detect nuanced risk signals that traditional systems often miss.
Adaptive Intelligence That Evolves With Cardholder Behavior
One of the most transformative aspects of the enhancement is its ability to adapt automatically to changing cardholder behavior and evolving market conditions. The AI models continuously learn from new transaction data, refining their risk assessments to stay aligned with real-world usage patterns. This adaptive capability ensures that fraud prevention systems remain effective even as consumer habits shift, new payment channels emerge, and fraud tactics evolve. The result is a living fraud detection framework that becomes more accurate and efficient over time.
Balancing Fraud Prevention and Customer Experience
A key challenge in payment security is reducing fraud without increasing false declines. Excessive declines can frustrate customers, damage trust, and lead to lost revenue. The AI-powered risk score addresses this challenge by improving precision in decision-making. By distinguishing legitimate transactions from suspicious ones with greater accuracy, businesses can approve more genuine purchases while blocking fraudulent activity. This balance helps organizations deliver seamless customer experiences while maintaining strong security measures.
Enabling Data-Driven Risk Strategies
The enhanced RTD capabilities empower customers to move toward data-driven risk management strategies. Businesses can assess the risk level of each transaction in real time, enabling them to make informed decisions based on actual cardholder behavior. The platform allows customers to simulate and test risk scenarios using their own data, creating a feedback loop that improves fraud prevention strategies over time. This level of control provides organizations with the flexibility to align risk policies with their specific business goals and tolerance levels.
Custom Rules and Controls for Fraud Management
In addition to AI-powered scoring, the RTD solution continues to support customizable authorization rules and controls. Customers can create tailored fraud prevention strategies by defining thresholds, triggers, and decision workflows that match their operational needs. The combination of custom rules and machine learning enables a layered defense approach, where deterministic logic and predictive analytics work together to deliver comprehensive protection. This flexibility ensures that organizations can adapt quickly to new threats while maintaining control over their risk management frameworks.
Responding to the Rapid Growth of Payment Fraud
The global payments ecosystem is experiencing a surge in fraud sophistication and scale. Industry projections indicate that payment fraud is expected to rise significantly between 2025 and 2030, highlighting the urgency for advanced detection methods. Fraudsters are leveraging automation, artificial intelligence, and complex attack strategies to bypass traditional defenses. In response, modern payment platforms must deploy equally advanced technologies capable of identifying and stopping fraudulent activity in real time. The AI-powered RTD enhancement represents a proactive step toward addressing this growing threat landscape.
Predictive Models That Detect Emerging Fraud Patterns
The integration of predictive machine learning models enables continuous detection of new and emerging fraud patterns. Unlike static systems that rely on predefined rules, predictive analytics can identify subtle anomalies and correlations that signal fraudulent behavior. This capability allows organizations to stay ahead of evolving threats by detecting suspicious activity before it results in financial loss. The system’s ability to learn from new data ensures that fraud detection strategies remain relevant and effective in a constantly changing environment.
Real-Time Decisioning as a Strategic Growth Enabler
Fraud prevention is not only a security concern but also a strategic growth factor. As businesses scale their card programs and expand into new markets, they face increased exposure to fraud risks. The enhanced RTD solution enables organizations to grow confidently by providing robust protection that scales alongside their operations. By embedding risk intelligence directly into the authorization process, businesses can focus on innovation and expansion without compromising security.
Leadership Perspective on Fraud Defense Innovation
Anthony Peculic emphasized the importance of staying ahead of rapidly evolving fraud threats and supporting businesses as they scale. The integration of AI-powered controls and advanced machine learning into the authorization process reflects a commitment to enabling growth while strengthening fraud defenses. The approach underscores the role of intelligent automation in helping organizations navigate the complexities of modern payments.
Comprehensive Risk Services Through RiskControl
The Real-Time Decisioning enhancement is part of a broader suite of risk services known as RiskControl. This comprehensive offering includes Know Your Customer (KYC) solutions, 3D Secure authentication, real-time decisioning capabilities, and end-to-end dispute management tools. Together, these services create a unified risk management ecosystem that addresses multiple stages of the payment lifecycle. By providing a holistic approach to risk, the platform enables businesses to manage fraud and compliance requirements more effectively.
Integrating KYC for Identity Verification
Know Your Customer capabilities play a critical role in establishing trust and preventing fraud during onboarding. By verifying user identities and assessing risk at the account creation stage, businesses can reduce the likelihood of fraudulent accounts entering their ecosystems. The integration of KYC within the broader risk services framework ensures that fraud prevention begins before the first transaction occurs. This proactive approach strengthens the foundation of the payment ecosystem.
Leveraging 3D Secure for Transaction Authentication
3D Secure authentication adds an additional layer of protection during online transactions. By verifying cardholder identity during the checkout process, businesses can reduce the risk of unauthorized purchases and chargebacks. The integration of 3D Secure within the risk services suite ensures that authentication and authorization work together seamlessly to protect transactions. This layered security approach enhances confidence for both businesses and consumers.
Streamlining End-to-End Dispute Management
Dispute management is a critical component of the fraud lifecycle. Efficient handling of disputes helps businesses recover funds, maintain customer satisfaction, and improve operational efficiency. The end-to-end dispute management tools within the risk services suite enable organizations to manage chargebacks and disputes more effectively. By integrating dispute workflows into the broader risk ecosystem, businesses can streamline processes and gain valuable insights into fraud trends.
Real-Time Insights Driving Operational Efficiency
The ability to analyze transaction data in real time provides valuable insights that extend beyond fraud prevention. Businesses can use these insights to optimize operational processes, refine customer experiences, and identify emerging trends. Real-time analytics empower organizations to make faster, more informed decisions across multiple aspects of their operations. This capability highlights the broader value of integrating advanced analytics into payment platforms.
Supporting Fintech Innovation and Embedded Finance
The enhanced RTD solution is particularly relevant for fintech companies and embedded finance providers seeking to deliver secure, seamless payment experiences. As these organizations innovate and introduce new financial products, they require flexible and scalable fraud prevention solutions. The AI-powered risk score supports innovation by providing the security infrastructure needed to launch and grow new offerings confidently.
Millisecond-Level Decisioning for Modern Payments
Speed is a critical factor in payment authorization. Consumers expect transactions to be approved instantly, whether they are shopping online, using mobile wallets, or making in-store purchases. The enhanced RTD solution delivers risk assessments in milliseconds, ensuring that fraud detection does not slow down the payment experience. This combination of speed and intelligence is essential for meeting the expectations of modern consumers.
Empowering Businesses to Simulate Risk Scenarios
The platform enables customers to run risk simulations based on real cardholder data, providing valuable insights into potential fraud scenarios. These simulations allow businesses to test and refine their risk strategies before deploying them in live environments. By enabling proactive planning and experimentation, the system helps organizations stay ahead of emerging threats and continuously improve their defenses.
Building Confidence in Scaling Card Programs
As businesses expand their card programs, they must navigate increasing transaction volumes and complex risk landscapes. The AI-powered RTD enhancement provides the tools needed to scale securely and efficiently. By combining predictive analytics, real-time insights, and customizable controls, the platform enables organizations to grow with confidence while maintaining strong fraud defenses.
Driving the Future of Intelligent Payment Security
The integration of artificial intelligence into real-time authorization represents a significant step forward in payment security. By embedding predictive intelligence directly into transaction workflows, the platform enables businesses to stay ahead of fraud while delivering seamless customer experiences. The enhancement reflects the broader industry shift toward intelligent automation and data-driven decision-making in financial services.
About Marqeta
Marqeta makes it possible for companies to build and embed financial services into their branded experience—and unlock new ways to grow their business and delight users. The Marqeta platform puts businesses in control of building financial solutions, enabling them to turn real-time data into personalized, optimized solutions for everything from consumer loyalty to capital efficiency. With compliance and security built-in, Marqeta’s platform has been proven at scale, processing nearly $400 billion in annual payments volume in 2025. Marqeta is certified to operate in more than 40 countries worldwide and counting. Visit www.marqeta.com to learn more.
