Visa to acquire BioCatch for $2.4 billion as payments security M&A keeps moving upstream

Visa has signed a definitive agreement to buy Israeli fraud prevention fintech BioCatch in an all-cash deal valued at $2.4 billion. For PSPs, acquirers, and banks, the important bit is not the price tag; it is that Visa is folding behavioural biometrics deeper into its fraud stack, with a close targeted for Q2 2027.

1. BioCatch will move from funds advised by London-based VC Permira, alongside shareholders including Bain Capital Tech Opportunities, CreditEase, and Maverick Ventures, to Visa ownership once the transaction closes. Visa says the deal is expected to close in Q2 2027.
2. Founded in 2011, BioCatch uses behavioural biometrics to detect online fraud and cybercrime in real time. Its system protects 1.8 billion devices across more than 350 banking clients by analysing signals such as keystrokes, touch gestures, and device handling to separate legitimate users from fraudsters.
3. Visa will fold BioCatch into its value-added services division. BioCatch’s entire leadership team, including CEO Gadi Mazor, will stay in place, which matters for buyers who care about continuity in vendor roadmap and client support after an acquisition.
4. Andrew Torre, president of value-added services at Visa, said BioCatch’s technology “will help our clients stop fraud before it reaches the point of payment.” He added: “This acquisition is part of our strategy to help clients prevent cyber threats upstream while continuing to protect transactions as they occur, building trust into every transaction.”
5. The BioCatch deal extends Visa’s existing fraud and cybersecurity portfolio, which already includes the Visa Vulnerability Agentic Harness, an open-source AI tool released this summer for Visa’s 14,500 financial institution clients. Visa says it has invested $13 billion over the past five years to “safeguard the integrity of the payments ecosystem and accelerate the decline in fraud rates,” and it also bought UK-based fraud detection firm Featurespace for $946 million in late 2024.