Visa is acquiring BioCatch, an Israeli fraud-reduction platform, for $2.4 billion in cash from funds advised by Permira and other shareholders, the company announced Monday. The deal underscores Visa's commitment to strengthening its fraud-prevention capabilities through advanced artificial intelligence.

BioCatch uses AI to detect fraud and distinguish legitimate users from attackers in real time, protecting 1.8 billion devices and 760 million users globally. The acquisition aligns with Visa's strategy of increasing AI use to fight fraud through its Visa Vulnerability Agentic Harness platform, a tool designed to help clients identify and fix vulnerabilities.

Visa has spent $13 billion on fraud technology and infrastructure over the past five years. "BioCatch will help our clients stop fraud before it reaches the point of payment," said Andrew Torre, Visa's president of value-added services, highlighting the platform's pre-transaction defense capabilities.

The deal is expected to close by the end of Visa's fiscal second quarter of 2027, pending regulatory approvals.