Peoples Group has partnered with fraud-prevention firm Feedzai to embed AI-driven fraud detection into its systems ahead of the fourth-quarter 2026 launch of Canada’s Real-Time Rail.
Canadian financial institution Peoples Group announced a partnership with fraud-prevention company Feedzai to build fraud defenses into Canada’s Real-Time Rail, the country’s new instant payments system set to launch in the fourth quarter of 2026, according to Biometric Update.
The Real-Time Rail will let payments clear and settle within seconds on a continuous, 24/7 basis, removing the settlement delay banks have historically relied on to catch and reverse unauthorized transfers before funds move. Under the partnership, Peoples Group is integrating Feedzai’s AI-driven risk-scoring technology into its transaction systems, starting with Feedzai’s RiskOps suite for real-time transaction monitoring and alert management to ensure Real-Time Rail compliance, before expanding to additional payment types and broader financial crime capabilities. Feedzai’s IQ Score federated-learning tool will also be deployed as part of the rollout.
“Trust is critical to driving adoption of Canada’s Real-Time Rail, and embedding fraud protection at the transaction level helps all players participate in an instant payments world with greater confidence,” said David Raju, President and CEO of Peoples Group. Nuno Sebastiao, co-founder and CEO of Feedzai, said the companies “share the goal of creating a world of safer money” by pairing Feedzai’s fraud prevention technology with Peoples Group’s network. A 2025 Payments Canada survey found nearly half of Canadians are interested in real-time payments, while more than half say fraud concerns already affect how they shop, per Biometric Update.
Why it matters for merchants: Once the Real-Time Rail is live, Canadian merchants accepting instant bank-to-bank payments will lose the settlement-delay window that currently gives banks time to flag and reverse fraudulent transfers, so any merchant planning to accept payments over the new rail should confirm their payment partner has real-time fraud screening in place before volume shifts over.
Source: BiometricUpdate.com
