By Andrew Jolley, CAMS | Fraud SME, FiVerity
Today’s fraud rings are no longer lone actors exploiting a gap in one institution’s system. They are highly coordinated, multi-layered operations that test detection rules, route money through networks of mule accounts, and exploit siloed investigations. These fraud rings don’t operate in isolation, and our response shouldn’t either.
As financial crime grows more complex, it’s time we rethink how we detect, investigate, and report it. One of the most powerful and underutilized tools available today is the collaborative Suspicious Activity Report (SAR). When paired with real-time, secure intelligence sharing, the SAR can shift from a compliance obligation to a cornerstone of proactive fraud prevention.
Inside the Modern Fraud Ring
A modern fraud ring is structured more like a business than a one-off scam. It typically includes:
- Individuals opening synthetic or fraudulent accounts
- Specialists stealing and laundering digital credentials
- Mule networks funneling funds across institutions
- Recruiters exploiting vulnerable individuals or insiders
- Organizers who analyze and test financial institutions' detection thresholds
These operations span multiple banks, credit unions, and fintech platforms. One institution might catch part of the activity an abnormal login, a fake check, or unusual ACH behavior but without cross-institutional visibility, it’s impossible to connect the pieces in real time.
And that’s the challenge: institutions are investigating sophisticated, distributed operations with limited internal data and no view of what others are seeing.
The Limits of the Traditional SAR
Every compliance professional knows that SARs are required under the Bank Secrecy Act to report suspicious activity. But the value of a SAR is only as strong as the information it contains, and most SARs are built in isolation.
This leads to common problems:
- Fragmented visibility: The SAR only reflects what one institution observed.
- Incomplete narratives: Investigators lack access to corroborating intelligence.
- Missed connections: Links between accounts, behaviors, or identities go unnoticed.
- Limited impact: Law enforcement lacks the full context to pursue prosecution.
What results is a reactive cycle: detect, investigate, file, repeat. But fraud rings are evolving faster than this process can keep up.
The Case for the Collaborative SAR
Now consider a different scenario. Three financial institutions, all using a secure, regulator-aligned collaboration platform, begin to see unusual behavior that shares similar traits: matching device fingerprints, repeat IP addresses, overlapping account holders, or shared mule activity.
Each institution flags the activity and engages with peers using 314(b)-protected channels to verify the pattern and build a joint case narrative while also keeping their sensitive customer data protected.
Instead of three disconnected SARs with partial details, they file coordinated, corroborated reports pointing to a larger fraud operation.
The difference is dramatic:
- Faster recognition of organized fraud behavior
- Stronger SAR narratives with corroborated evidence
- Earlier disruption of multi-institutional fraud schemes
- More effective law enforcement engagement and outcomes
This approach transforms the SAR into a proactive intelligence tool. Not just a regulatory requirement, but a force multiplier.
Why This Matters Now
Fraud is accelerating. So is the sophistication of the attackers. What once took weeks now happens in minutes. Synthetic identities, mule rings, and digital account manipulation are thriving largely because institutions are working alone against adversaries working together.
The collaborative SAR, backed by secure, real-time information sharing, breaks that pattern. It allows institutions to:
- Detect coordinated attacks early
- Build stronger internal case files
- Strengthen AML and BSA program effectiveness
- Demonstrate proactive collaboration to regulators
More importantly, it levels the playing field. Smaller institutions can contribute to and benefit from the same intelligence network as larger players without compromising security or compliance.
Conclusion: One Fraud, Many Institutions
Fraud rings don’t just touch one bank or one credit union. They touch five, ten, or more quietly, quickly, and repeatedly. But instead of responding with five or ten fragmented SARs, financial institutions now have the opportunity to respond with one shared story: one pattern, many institutions, one disrupted fraud ring.
Collaboration is not just a buzzword. It’s a strategic necessity. The institutions that embrace it securely, compliantly, and purposefully will lead the next generation of financial crime prevention.
Learn how FiVerity helps institutions collaborate securely and effectively to build stronger SARs, faster investigations, and smarter defense strategies.