Speaking at the NextGen Payments & RegTech Forum in Dublin, Group MLRO Mustafa Hussain says regulated firms must remain responsible as consumers delegate financial decisions to AI
Manchester, UK – At the NextGen Payments & RegTech Forum in Dublin, Mustafa Hussain, Group MLRO at ACE Money Transfer, addressed a question the payments industry has yet to fully answer: who is responsible when AI gets it wrong?
As artificial intelligence reshapes the future of payments,moving consumers from giving instructions to simply defining outcomes and allowing AI agents to act on their behalf, Hussain warned that this shift, often referred to as agentic commerce, introduces a new category of risk the industry has yet to fully address. While it promises greater convenience and a more seamless customer experience, he argued it also changes how financial decisions are made at a fundamental level.
“Agentic payments don’t just add new risks, they change the nature of risk entirely,” said Mustafa. “For decades, payments have been based on human instructions. As consumers increasingly delegate financial decisions to AI, the industry must confront a question it has not yet fully answered: who is responsible when AI gets it wrong?”
Unlike traditional payments, where accountability is relatively straightforward, AI-driven transactions create new complexities around liability, oversight and consumer protection. At the same time, fraud is expected to evolve from human-speed attacks to machine-speed threats, requiring financial institutions to rethink traditional safeguards.
“The biggest challenge is no longer transaction risk, but decision risk,” Mustafa explained. “While AI reduces friction for customers, it increases complexity for institutions. Accountability cannot disappear simply because a machine was involved. Regulated firms must remain responsible for ensuring sound risk management, appropriate controls, oversight, and customer protections are maintained.”
He also stressed the importance of transparency and auditability as AI becomes increasingly embedded within financial services.
“Every AI-driven action must be explainable and leave behind a clear audit trail. We need to know what the AI was asked to do, what it actually did, why it made that decision and whether it was authorised to do so. Trust will remain the foundation of financial services, regardless of how advanced the technology becomes.”
As the industry moves towards increasingly autonomous systems, Mustafa believes a consumer-centric approach to AI governance will be essential.
“The future of payments will not be defined solely by how intelligent AI becomes, but by how accountable it remains,” he concluded.
Mustafa Hussain recently participated in a panel discussion on agentic payments and AI governance at the NextGen Payments & RegTech Forum in Dublin, where industry leaders explored the opportunities and challenges presented by the rise of agentic commerce.
About ACE Money Transfer
ACE Money Transfer is a global remittance provider regulated by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Since 2002, it has grown into a trusted name for millions of customers worldwide, enabling people to send money securely, quickly, and at low cost to support their families and communities back home.
The company operates under strong regulatory oversight, through its locally regulated and registered entities, authorised as a Payment Institution by the FCA in the UK, licensed by the Central Bank of Ireland, regulated by the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF), Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) and registered with AUSTRAC in Australia. With operations spanning dozens of sending countries and over a hundred receiving destinations, ACE continues to expand its global reach while keeping customer convenience, transparency, and innovation at the heart of its services.
Media Contact:
Name: Sami Ullah Baig
Designation: PR and Liaison Lead
Email: sami.ullah@acemoneytransfer.com
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