Criminals allegedly used an AI-cloned voice and a spoofed messaging account to convince a senior executive at Fideuram, the private-banking arm of Italy’s largest bank, to authorize approximately €95 million in international transfers, according to Reuters. The scheme began in February 2026, and it was first reported publicly by major outlets in September of the same year.
How the Scam Worked
A two-channel impersonation made the fraudulent instruction appear to come from two independent, trusted sources at once.
Then-Fideuram chairman Paolo Molesini received a WhatsApp message that appeared to come from Intesa Sanpaolo CEO Carlo Messina, requesting urgent assistance with an overseas transaction, according to sources familiar with the matter who spoke to Reuters. A follow-up phone call then arrived from someone posing as a senior law-firm partner, with sources saying the criminals used AI to reproduce that lawyer’s voice.
Two apparently independent confirmations, one written and one spoken, made the instruction appear legitimate to someone with genuine authority to act on it. Based on the reported method, AI did not defeat Fideuram’s payment systems; it made a fraudulent order look real to the person who already had legitimate access to those systems.
What Was Recovered and What Remains Missing
International cooperation allowed authorities to claw back a significant portion of the funds, but a substantial sum remains untraced.
Fideuram detected irregularities and alerted recipient banks and authorities. Cooperation among institutions in Italy, China, and Portugal enabled the recovery of approximately €53 million, according to Reuters.
Roughly €36 million remained untraced, per Reuters, though other reports have cited approximately €39.5 million; the final unrecovered figure should be treated as provisional. Funds had been routed to accounts in China and Hong Kong before being converted into cryptocurrency, which complicated recovery efforts.
The Resignation and the Investigation
Molesini resigned the following month, though no official account has formally linked his departure to the fraud.
Molesini resigned as Fideuram chairman in March 2026, citing personal reasons. The timing may invite speculation that the fraud contributed to his departure, though reporting does not establish that the resignation was formally attributed to the incident. According to sources cited by Reuters, Molesini and other Fideuram executives were not under investigation.
Milan prosecutors were reportedly investigating at least one foreign national living outside Europe on suspicion of computer fraud. The specific voice-cloning model, training data, and technical systems used to generate the audio had not been publicly established in available reporting.
What This Means for Verification Practices
A familiar voice is no longer reliable proof of identity when synthetic audio can closely reproduce vocal characteristics.
Voice cloning lowers the cost of producing convincing impersonations, particularly when criminals can source audio from public speeches, interviews, or conference recordings. Organizations that rely on recognizing a caller’s voice as an informal authentication check are exposed to exactly this kind of attack.
When your organization receives an urgent, high-value payment instruction through an informal channel like WhatsApp, treat it as unverified. Out-of-band confirmation through a separately verified number, dual authorization requirements, and pre-approved beneficiary lists are the controls that create friction for fraud. These are general security practices, not confirmed failures or omissions specific to Fideuram.
Speed of Detection Still Matters
Recovery of more than half the reported sum shows that rapid detection and cross-border cooperation can meaningfully limit losses.
The recovery was attributed to detection and coordinated action across multiple jurisdictions. Once stolen funds move into cryptocurrency, recovery can become more difficult. The investigation remained active as of the September reporting, and the final accounting on losses may still shift.
