The 2026 True Cost of Fraud Study reveals that digital and mobile channels account for 69% of fraud losses, while AI-assisted attacks are adding pressure to financial institutions across North America.
LexisNexis Risk Solutions has released its 2026 True Cost of Fraud Study for Financial Services and Lending in North America, revealing that every $1 lost directly to fraud now represents a total cost of $5.47 for U.S. financial services firms, compared with $4.00 in 2021.
The study, based on responses from 319 fraud and risk professionals in the United States and Canada, examines fraud costs, emerging threats, technology adoption and the business impact of prevention strategies.
The fraud cost multiplier reached $4.84 for U.S. lending companies, while Canadian financial services and lending firms reported $4.09 and $3.89, respectively.
Digital Channels Account for 69% of Fraud Losses
Websites account for 39% of reported fraud losses, followed by mobile applications at 30%.
The study found that 96% of surveyed institutions experienced an increase in fraud targeting mobile apps over the previous year, with 69% reporting mobile fraud cost increases of at least 10%.
Fraud attacks were concentrated around transactions (39%), new account creation (33%) and account access (28%). Card transactions and account transfers together represented 48% of fraud losses.
The findings indicate that digital customer journeys remain exposed to risks throughout onboarding, authentication and payment execution.
AI-Generated Fraud Adds to Financial Pressure
Surveyed organizations estimated that AI-generated techniques contributed to 19% of fraud losses in the United States and 25% in Canada.
Synthetic identity fraud accounted for the largest individual identity-related loss category at 19%, followed by third-party identity fraud, third-party account takeover and first-party fraud, each at 17%.
Financial institutions are increasingly deploying AI in response. According to the study, 56% use AI-based capabilities to address synthetic identity fraud and account takeover, 48% apply them to scams and 46% to first-party fraud.
Four in five respondents considered AI-powered capabilities extremely or very important when selecting fraud prevention solutions.
Automated Fraud Prevention Shows Stronger Results
The research identified substantial differences between organizations relying mainly on automated prevention programs and those using predominantly manual processes.
Among firms with mainly automated programs, 89% reported higher perceived fraud prevention effectiveness, compared with 61% of those relying mainly on manual approaches.
Automated organizations were also more likely to report improvements in fraud prevention performance (79% versus 54%) and greater reductions in customer churn (29% versus 10%).
“Fraud continues to evolve across every stage of the customer journey, and digital channels and AI-assisted techniques are increasing the speed, scale and complexity of attacks,” said Kimberly White, Senior Director, Fraud and Identity, North America, LexisNexis Risk Solutions.
White emphasized the value of connecting identity intelligence, behavioral analysis, device intelligence and AI-driven decision-making within integrated prevention strategies.
Customer Trust and Compliance Costs Remain Under Pressure
Fraud’s financial impact extends beyond the initial loss.
According to the study, recovery, reimbursement and direct liability costs account for approximately 48% of total fraud costs. The remaining 52% includes additional expenses such as fees, interest, customer acquisition and crisis communications.
Participating organizations also reported consequences for customer trust (49%), compliance workload (47%) and brand reputation (39%).
More than half, 56%, indicated that fraud prevention strategies had contributed to increased customer churn, demonstrating the importance of balancing security controls with accessible digital financial services.
Looking ahead, financial institutions plan to prioritize biometric authentication (53%), verifiable credentials and digital identity wallets (48%), behavioral intelligence (47%) and digital risk assessment (45%) over the next 24 months.
Additionally, 62% plan to invest in AI-enhanced identity verification.
The findings underline a growing challenge for the financial services industry: institutions must strengthen fraud prevention as attacks become more sophisticated, while controlling operating costs and limiting unnecessary friction for legitimate customers.
Source: LexisNexis Risk Solutions, 2026 True Cost of Fraud Study, North America — Financial Services and Lending. Findings reflect participating organizations’ reported experiences and estimates and may not represent all financial institutions.
