Director at MCP Insight Kev Dawson shares thoughts on how risk management can be a key driver for many diffrent parts of the mobile ecosystem and how proactively managing risk can lead to new opportunities.
For too long, risk management in mobile payments has been seen as a necessary evil – something businesses must deal with rather than something that can actively drive success. It’s often viewed as a defensive strategy, a way to avoid fines or fraud losses rather than a tool for growth.
But what if risk management was the key to unlocking new revenue streams, building stronger partnerships, and creating a more predictable and scalable business model?
The reality is that businesses that get ahead of risk don’t just protect themselves – they put themselves in a position to scale faster, retain customers longer, and operate with confidence in even the most challenging markets. A well-managed risk strategy means fewer customer complaints and partner disputes, leading to stronger relationships with all parties. It means turning risk from an unpredictable liability into a competitive advantage.
The High Cost Of Getting Risk Wrong
We’ve all seen what happens when risk isn’t managed properly. Non-compliant advertising, fraudulent transactions, and unauthorised billing don’t just hurt individual businesses – they damage the entire ecosystem.
When consumers lose trust in phone-paid transactions, they complain. Regulators take action.
Mobile operators, under pressure to protect their users, tighten restrictions or shut down markets entirely. And legitimate businesses – the ones playing by the rules -end up paying the price.
Poor risk management leads to higher refund rates, increased customer churn, and growing regulatory scrutiny. Operators become more hesitant to support services they can’t fully trust, and suddenly, access to innovative mobile payments methods like carrier billing – one of the most friction free payment methods available – is no longer an option.
But it doesn’t have to be this way.
Flipping The Script: Risk As A Growth Enabler
The businesses that thrive in this space don’t just react to fraud when it happens – they stay ahead of it. Instead of firefighting problems as they arise, they use real-time data and risk intelligence to prevent issues before they start.
For mobile operators, a well-managed risk framework means they can expand mobile payments with confidence, reducing the risk of fraud while maintaining consumer trust. When operators have visibility into advertising flows, service quality, and compliance standards, they can support more merchants, grow revenue streams, and strengthen their position as trusted payment facilitators.”
This innovation reduces the volume of funds crossing borders and optimizes liquidity for central banks. Additionally, PAPSS allows transactions in local currencies, eliminating costly foreign exchange conversions.
They keep a close eye on advertising flows, ensuring that banner ads, landing pages, and payment screens are clear, compliant, and aligned with customer expectations. They don’t just rely on affiliate networks to do the right thing – they often directly buy their advertising with established partners, actively monitor their campaigns and conversions and, if using affiliates, closely manage the traffic quality before they damage their brand.
They build strong relationships with mobile operators, demonstrating that they take risk and building sustainable business models seriously. When an operator sees that a merchant has robust controls in place, they’re far more likely to approve services, extend carrier billing access, and provide better commercial terms.
And they strike a balance between security and user experience. Overcomplicated verification processes can drive users away, but a seamless, transparent payment flow that protects both the business and the customer builds trust and long-term engagement.
Risk management, when done right, isn’t a blocker to growth – it’s a foundation for sustainable, predictable revenue.
What Successful Companies Do Differently
Businesses that treat risk as a strategic priority tend to share a few key traits.
First, they don’t wait for problems to escalate – they take a proactive approach to fraud detection, market trends and compliance monitoring. Instead of waiting for complaints to pile up, they use real-time analytics to flag suspicious patterns, from traffic anomalies to high-risk payment behaviours.
Second, they work with regulators, not against them. Instead of scrambling to comply with new rules when they’re introduced, they stay ahead of policy changes and demonstrate that they’re operating in good faith. They also self-regulate, as we’ve seen in the UK with the formation of the Association for Interactive Media and Micropayments (AIMM), pre-empting more restrictive regulation by playing fair from the start. Similarly, with MEF membership they find a global association that delivers working groups of both focus and purpose.
This proactively supports collaboration, innovation and growth across the wider eco system, through its challenges as well as its opportunities. And finally, they understand that customer trust is everything. A consumer who feels deceived by a payment flow isn’t just lost revenue – they’re a potential complaint, a refund, a social media post that erodes confidence in mobile payments as a whole. On the other hand, a consumer who feels safe, informed, and in control of their transactions is far more likely to return and become a longterm customer.
The companies that win in this space aren’t the ones with the most aggressive marketing tactics or the lowest pricing – they’re the ones that create an environment where customers, operators, and regulators all feel confident in their ability to operate safely and sustainably.
Risk Management as a Competitive Differentiator
At MCP Insight, we’ve seen firsthand how businesses that take risk seriously outperform those that treat it as an afterthought. Our work across multiple markets has shown us that the companies that put controls in place and invest in solutions to do this, don’t just stay out of trouble – they unlock new opportunities.
This is true across the whole value chain. For mobile operators, a well-managed risk framework means they can expand mobile payments with confidence, reducing the risk of fraud while maintaining consumer trust. When operators have visibility into advertising flows, service quality, and compliance standards, they can support more merchants, grow revenue streams, and strengthen their position as trusted payment facilitators.
For payment aggregators, strong risk controls enhance their reputation and commercial viability. By actively vetting content providers, ensuring clean traffic sources, and demonstrating a commitment to compliance, they can secure better agreements with operators, onboard more partners, and scale business without regulatory concerns slowing them.
For content service providers, risk management is the key to higher customer retention, lower refund rates, and long-term market access. Ensuring transparent user journeys, preventing misleading ads, and avoiding high-risk traffic sources builds credibility – not just with operators, but with consumers who are more likely to engage with services they trust.
For regulators, businesses that adopt self-regulation and proactive monitoring reduce the need for heavy-handed enforcement. Instead of reacting to fraud and compliance failures, regulators can work alongside industry leaders to create balanced frameworks that protect consumers while allowing the market to thrive.
Risk management isn’t about ticking boxes – it’s about creating the right conditions for sustainable, long-term growth across the entire mobile payments ecosystem. When every player in the value chain takes responsibility for fraud prevention, compliance, and transparency, the industry doesn’t just become safer – it becomes more profitable, resilient, and primed for future innovation.
The bottom line? Risk isn’t something to be feared or avoided – it’s something to be understood, controlled, and used as a foundation for long-term success.
