Prembly, Lagos-based identity verification company has unveiled an open-source fraud intelligence platform called FraudLens, which is aimed at strengthening fraud detection and prevention across Africa’s fast-growing digital financial ecosystem.
The platform, described as a ‘Fraud Intelligence Bank’, serves as a publicly accessible repository of fraud data, behavioural patterns, and offender intelligence gathered from millions of identity verification checks conducted by businesses using Prembly’s technology.
“Having supported digital security for leading financial institutions both regionally and globally, we’ve seen firsthand that data sharing is the critical first step toward meaningful fraud reduction,” said Lanre Ogungbe, chief executive officer of Prembly.
“We haven’t seen any resource this accessible and comprehensive, and rather than waiting for someone else to build it, we decided to,” he added.
The launch comes at a time when digital financial services are expanding rapidly across Sub-Saharan Africa, with more than half of the region’s youth now holding financial accounts compared to less than a quarter a decade ago.
While this growth has widened access to financial services, it has also opened new avenues for financial crime.
Prembly said FraudLens is designed to help financial institutions, fintech companies, banks, and other businesses identify risks earlier by giving them access to verified intelligence on reported fraud cases. The platform includes information on known bad actors, documented incidents, and behavioural patterns associated with fraudulent activities.
According to the company, the initiative aims to address a major challenge in Africa’s fight against financial crime, which is fragmented fraud intelligence systems that often operate in isolation.
Several African countries, including Nigeria, Kenya, Rwanda, Mauritius, and South Africa, have introduced or are developing national cybersecurity frameworks to combat financial crime. However, gaps remain due to limited collaboration and data sharing across institutions, allowing fraud networks to exploit weaknesses.
The platform is designed to serve three major groups: financial institutions and fintechs, which can access intelligence on reported fraud actors; researchers and policymakers, who can use the data to inform regulatory and compliance strategies; and consumers, who can explore insights about common scams and fraud warning signs to improve digital safety.
Prembly said the Fraud Intelligence Bank aggregates fraud incidents reported by hundreds of businesses and partner financial institutions. Each reported case undergoes behavioural and forensic analysis to identify patterns that could help prevent future fraud attempts.
The company plans to roll out FraudLens first in Nigeria, one of Africa’s largest digital financial markets, before expanding the platform to other countries across the continent in the coming months.
Prembly provides AI-powered identity verification, fraud prevention, and compliance tools to help organisations run secure, compliant digital operations at scale across Africa.
