Yes Bank flags $0.28m forex card fraud case

Yes Bank has disclosed that fraudulent transactions totalling about USD 0.28 million were carried out on its multi-currency prepaid forex cards on 24 February 2026. The cards were issued in partnership with online foreign exchange platform BookMyForex, the bank said in a public statement.

According to the bank, the unauthorised transactions were approved on behalf of around 5,000 customers at 15 merchants based in a Latin American country. The activity occurred in the early hours of 24 February between 3:30am and 8:30am Indian Standard Time.

Yes Bank said the issue was identified after its fraud monitoring system observed an unusual increase in transaction declines related to the affected forex card product. The bank described the pattern as concentrated on specific bank identification numbers (BINs) associated with the cards.

The lender stated that its monitoring and control mechanisms blocked 688 unauthorised transaction attempts, which it said prevented approximately USD 0.1 million in additional potential losses. The bank has initiated an internal investigation into the incident.

Yes Bank also said it is working with the relevant card network to raise chargebacks on the fraudulent transactions. The objective, according to the bank, is to ensure that impacted customers do not suffer any financial loss as a result of the incident.

As an immediate security step, Yes Bank has restricted e-commerce transactions originating from the specific Latin American country involved. Indian media reports have identified the country as Brazil, though the bank did not name it directly in its statement.

Yes Bank highlighted that the country where the merchants are based does not mandate two-factor authentication for e-commerce transactions. In contrast, Indian banks typically rely on additional authentication layers for online card payments, such as one-time passwords.

The bank’s comments indicate that the absence of mandatory two-factor authentication in that market may have created a more favourable environment for fraudulent card-not-present activity targeting international cardholders.

Yes Bank said it continues to closely monitor the situation in coordination with card networks and other stakeholders. The bank reiterated that it is focused on safeguarding customer interests while its investigation into the attempted and completed transactions proceeds.