Payments processor Visa (V) said Monday it will buy the Tel Aviv-based cybersecurity company BioCatch in a $2.4 billion cash deal as part of a broader strategy to bolster its services with stronger guardrails amid the rise of AI-powered bot attacks.
As of the writing, V stock was up 2%.
BioCatch primarily focuses on preventing fraud and financial crime by recognizing patterns in human behavior. The firm uses AI and machine-learning models to detect signs of coercion or manipulation in digital transactions, helping banks distinguish criminal activity from legitimate ones in real time.
The acquisition aligns with Visa’s big-picture vision of proactively strengthening its offerings, as AI, biometrics, authentication, identity, cyber defense and fraud prevention are increasingly interconnected, the company said.
According to a study by Thales from late April, AI-driven bot attacks surged 12.5x in 2025, with bots dominating the internet, accounting for over half of all traffic, with 40% classified as malicious.
“Account takeovers and scams cost the global economy over $1 trillion annually, and AI is enabling these attacks at unprecedented scale,” said Andrew Torre, president of value-added services, Visa. “BioCatch will help our clients stop fraud before it reaches the point of payment.”
Visa views the acquisition as complementary to its existing cyber, fraud, risk, and security solutions business. The company will bring under its fold more than BioCatch’s 350+ banking clients in 21 different countries, thereby expanding its already extensive global footprint.
The deal will also “provide significant benefits to its financial institution clients, consumers, and the wider payments industry” when it closes, which is expected by the end of the second quarter of 2027.
On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward the stock remained in ‘neutral’ territory over the last 24 hours. V stock has gained over 4% so far this year and more than 6% over the past 12 months.
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