Banks Urged to Extend Cooling-Off Periods to 72 Hours to Combat Online Scams and Fraud

Samuel Chua

30th December 2024 - 2 min read

Financial institutions should consider extending the cooling-off period for online transactions to up to 72 hours to combat scams and fraud, according to Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Datuk Seri Ramli Mohamed Yoosuf.

Highlighting the importance of stricter measures to curb online fraud, Ramli urged banks to prioritise the safety of their customers. “One of the ways is to have a longer cooling-off period, perhaps 48 or 72 hours. While it may affect genuine business transactions initially, people will adapt over time,” he stated.

Ramli stressed that such measures would significantly lower the prevalence of scams, thereby protecting the public from substantial financial losses. He also called for enhanced enforcement of the “know your customer” (KYC) policy, especially when companies open bank accounts.

“We are seeing a trend where companies can easily open accounts and register with banking systems. Unfortunately, some of these companies are being exploited as money mules, especially in investment scams.”

To tackle this, Ramli urged banks to collaborate with the Companies Commission of Malaysia to thoroughly vet companies applying for bank accounts, adding that this would ensure only legitimate companies gain approval, making it harder for scammers to exploit shell companies to launder illicit funds.

Commercial crimes, including online scams, have caused an alarming RM2.7 billion in losses this year. According to Ramli, 30,724 cases were reported between 1 January and 15 December. Although this represents a 3% decrease from last year’s 31,588 cases, the financial losses have surged by 44%, rising from RM1.9 billion in 2022.

(Source: The Star)

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Samuel Chua

Samuel writes about personal finance and financial news, focusing on how banking updates, policies, and promotions affect everyday money decisions. He enjoys making complicated financial topics easier to follow. Outside of writing, he spends his time watching TV shows and occasionally convincing himself he will only watch one episode.