What to do if…
a supplier asks you to change payment details to wire or crypto

What to do now

1. Put the invoice on hold. Mark it “verification pending” and tell anyone who can release payments that no payment or supplier bank-detail change should be made yet.

2. Use known-good supplier contact details. Call or message the supplier using details from your existing vendor record, signed contract, previous successful payment records, or a website address you type in yourself. Do not use any contact details from the suspicious message.

3. Ask for the change to go through the normal supplier-change route. Ask the supplier to confirm the invoice number, amount, purchase order or reference, and the reason for the bank-detail or payment-method change through your established process, not through the suspicious email thread.

4. Treat “wire or crypto only” as a major warning sign. If your contract and payment history do not already support that method, keep the payment stopped until a trusted supplier contact confirms what is happening.

5. Check your own records before adding or changing a payee. Compare the requested details with your vendor master record, the last paid invoice, and any approved supplier-change documentation. If the new details are undocumented or unexpected, do not pay.

6. Use Confirmation of Payee warnings as a stop signal where they appear. For UK domestic account payments, your bank may show whether the payee name matches the account. If you see no match, close match, unavailable, or any warning you cannot explain, stop and re-check with the supplier using known-good contact details.

7. Require a second person before any payment is released. Ask someone outside the original email chain to check the supplier record, the invoice, the requested payment details, and the verification call-back notes.

8. If the supplier’s email may be compromised, warn them safely. Use known-good contact details and say you received a bank-detail or crypto payment demand that may not be genuine.

9. If you have already sent money, act now.

   • Call your bank or payment provider’s fraud team immediately and ask them to try to stop, recover, or trace the payment.
   • If you used a crypto platform or exchange, contact that platform immediately and report suspected fraud. Crypto transfers may be difficult or impossible to reverse.
   • Keep a note of the time you called, who you spoke to, and any reference number.

10. Report the suspected fraud.

• In England, Wales, or Northern Ireland, report it to Report Fraud.
• In Scotland, report it to Police Scotland on 101.
• Forward suspicious emails to [email protected].
• Forward suspicious texts to 7726.

11. Save the evidence in one place. Keep the invoice, the bank details or crypto address requested, sender details, email headers if available, attachments, dates and times, internal approvals, screenshots of payment screens, and any bank or report reference numbers. Do not include passwords in screenshots.