07/08/2025

Checking for Fraud: Texas Community Bank Nips Check Fraud in the Bud

Dark Reading

Texas National Bank learned from experience that 2022 was a big year for check fraud. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) reported that cases actually doubled from 2021 to 2022, and the nine-branch bank based in Edinburg, Texas, was one of those statistics. That year, the bank experienced an event that resulted in $143,000 worth of fraudulent checks demanding payment.

It started with a Texas National Bank customer, whose checks had been stolen in the mail and distributed across the country. The checks were then altered and submitted for payment. The altered checks cleared Texas National Bank, but the bank was alerted when a customer questioned a transaction. Although Stephen Wager, the bank's chief risk and compliance officer, was able to submit warranty claims against the other bank involved and recover the money, that event was enough for Wager to make big changes.