ANZ Stopped $100M in Scams: Why Mule Accounts Still Win

The short answer: ANZ reported on 6 October 2026 that customer scam losses fell 24% and it prevented or recovered more than $100 million between October 2025 and June 2026. It also named stolen identities and mule accounts as a major emerging threat. Bank controls catch unusual behaviour, but a planned supplier payment to a mule account can look normal.

Key takeaways

• ANZ prevented and recovered more than $100 million in scam and fraud funds in nine months.
• ANZ flagged accounts opened with stolen identities as a significant emerging threat.
• The check on who owns the receiving account sits with the business paying.
• For the fundamentals, see our guide to bank account ownership verification.

On 6 October 2026, ANZ reported that customer scam losses fell 24% compared with the same period a year earlier, and that it prevented and recovered more than $100 million in scam and fraud-related funds between October 2025 and June 2026. (ANZ)

Good news. In the same release, ANZ named the threats it wants businesses to watch, and added that one of the most significant emerging threats is the use of stolen identities and mule accounts.

What did ANZ say?

The bank said business email compromise, payment redirection and impersonation scams remain among the most significant threats facing businesses today. It also pointed to the Australian Signals Directorate’s Annual Cyber Threat Report, which recorded more than 84,700 cybercrime reports in FY25, with BEC and identity fraud among the top reported cybercrimes affecting businesses.

Cosi De Angelis, ANZ’s General Manager Specialist Sales, said “criminals are adopting more sophisticated tactics to manipulate customers into approving payments” and “in many cases, criminals are exploiting trust as effectively as they are technology.”

She also made a point that is easy to miss. “Scam prevention isn’t only about stopping customers from sending money to criminals.”

ANZ’s advice to business customers is practical. Confirm by phone, not email, if a supplier asks to change banking details or a new supplier provides details. Require two authorisations for large, sensitive or urgent payments. Review how supplier details are updated and make sure employees know the policy.

Where do mule accounts fit in a scam?

A mule account is where the stolen payment lands. In a payment redirection scam, a business pays what looks like a normal supplier invoice, and the money arrives in an account controlled by someone else. It is then moved on.

ANZ says it has observed coordinated criminal activity involving accounts opened using stolen identities, then used for scam activity, money mule operations, micro-laundering and moving scam proceeds. Our reading of that is the harder version of the problem. An account in a real person’s name is harder to spot than an obviously fake one.

We have written about where identity data comes from. The Quest breach and a telco insider case both put real identity details in circulation. We are not claiming those events produced any particular account. The point is that criminals can obtain what they need to open accounts that look real.

Why don’t bank-side wins fully protect business payments?

Bank controls are well suited to what a bank can see. Unusual behaviour on a customer’s account. A customer sending money to a known scam destination. A high-risk payment that can be paused. ANZ’s result suggests its controls are having an effect.

A business paying a planned supplier invoice looks different. The amount is expected, the payee is a new or changed account, and a human has approved it. The bank sees a routine payment to a valid account.

Confirmation of Payee adds a name check, and it is valuable. It tells you whether the name you typed matches the name on the account. It does not tell you whether the business behind the account is real, or whether the person asking for the change is who they claim to be.

Before your next payment run, try our free ABN lookup. It takes a few minutes and shows where your process is exposed.

Related reading: Quest Data Breach: How Stolen IDs Turn Into Payment Fraud, Telco Insider Charged Over Data Sales: The Fraud Link.

Which check sits with the payer?

Before money moves to a new or changed account, three questions are worth answering.

• Is the business real and registered, with an active ABN that matches the name on the invoice?
• Is the person asking for the payment or change who they say they are?
• Does the account belong to that business, not just a name that looks right?

Answering those before the payment goes out is the payer’s job, because the payer is the only party who knows who they intend to pay. It is what bank account ownership verification does. A mule account in a stolen identity can still be caught when the account does not belong to the business or person the invoice says it should, or when the entity behind it does not check out.

ANZ’s phone-confirmation advice is sound, and worth following. It works best when it is paired with a check on the account itself, so that a persuasive voice or a polished email is never the only thing standing between your money and a mule.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much did ANZ stop in scams?

ANZ said it prevented and recovered more than $100 million in scam and fraud-related funds between October 2025 and June 2026, and customer scam losses fell 24%.

What is a mule account?

A mule account is where a stolen payment lands before it is moved on. ANZ has observed accounts opened using stolen identities for this purpose.

What should businesses check before paying a new account?

That the business is real with an active ABN matching the invoice, that the person asking is genuine, and that the account belongs to that business.