Mastercard has announced the launch of A2A Protect, a new global service designed to enhance protection for consumers making account-to-account (A2A) payments, starting in the UK.

The service aims to address growing concerns about fraud and disputes in the rapidly expanding A2A payments sector.

A2A Protect will be rolled out in collaboration with Monzo, NatWest and Santander, who are working with Mastercard to strengthen fraud prevention and consumer protection in the UK’s Faster Payments system. The service will combine advanced fraud detection technology with a clear dispute resolution framework, offering consumers increased protection before, during and after transactions.

Jorn Lambert, chief product officer at Mastercard, said, “With Fast A2A comes fast fraud, and we owe it to consumers to have their back. Mastercard A2A Protect delivers meaningful benefits to every participant in a transaction. It lowers operational costs for financial institutions through standardised real-time fraud insights and streamlined dispute resolution, and all participants benefit from quicker and more predictable outcomes. Most importantly, consumers can feel reassured they have the appropriate protection when making account-to-account payments.”

The service will initially target authorised push payment (APP) fraud, which accounted for a significant portion of the £592 million lost in the UK to A2A fraud last year, according to UK Finance. Subsequent phases will expand to cover other scenarios, including disputes over goods and services.

Paul Horlock, chief payments officer at Santander, commented, “The alignment of capabilities and security across payment channels is critical to enable choice and protecting consumers. We see this Mastercard initiative as a promising addition to the evolving landscape of A2A payment utility and security.”

Andy Sacre, head of payments at Monzo, added, “Collaboration and information sharing are essential to fight fraud, which is why we’re working with Mastercard to build a tool that gives banks access to industry-wide data to help them spot suspicious transactions.”

The launch of A2A Protect aligns with the UK government’s National Payments Vision, which seeks to modernise account-to-account payments and maintain public trust in digital payments.

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