The Political and Economic Impacts of Artificial Intelligence-Powered Financial Fraud Detection on Remittances in the Global South
This policy brief analyzes how AI-powered fraud detection systems in financial services disproportionately harm international remittances to the Global South, where the flows are vital for household economies and national stability. Systematic algorithmic bias flags legitimate transfers as fraudulent, leading to account lockouts, blocked transactions, and driving migrants toward insecure underground systems like hawala. The fragmentation of regulatory frameworks across jurisdictions enables technological discrimination, eroding both individual livelihoods and the political leverage of remittance-dependent states such as El Salvador. The brief calls for urgent multilateral intervention, including bias elimination requirements, liability frameworks, and recognition of remittance access as a protected human right under international law.
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