Estonia's Ministry of Finance has circulated a draft law for inter-agency consultation that would give banks clearer and broader tools to prevent payment fraud. The proposal would explicitly allow banks to temporarily stop a payment transaction when there is a justified suspicion of fraud and to exchange fraud-prevention information with other banks and relevant public authorities. Under the draft, a payment could be paused on the basis of clear risk indicators to allow checks, with the bank contacting the customer to confirm whether they still want to proceed; if the customer does not wish to proceed, the transfer would not be executed. Banks would also be permitted to share information needed to prevent fraud with each other and with the Police and Border Guard Board and the Estonian Information System Authority, including information about potential fraud attempts and the manipulation techniques being used. The Ministry cited the scale of losses from financial fraud, with Estonian residents losing nearly EUR 29 million in 2025, almost double the prior year. The law is planned to enter into force on 1 July 2026.
Ministry of Finance (Estonia) 2026-02-23
Estonia's Ministry of Finance circulates draft law giving banks explicit powers to pause suspected fraudulent payments and share anti-fraud information
Estonia's Ministry of Finance proposed a draft law to enhance banks' ability to prevent payment fraud, allowing temporary transaction halts when fraud is suspected and information sharing with banks and authorities. It outlines procedures for pausing payments based on risk indicators and mandates customer confirmation before proceeding, responding to significant fraud losses, with residents losing nearly EUR 29 million in 2025.