Survey by KPMG India: Majority in Consumer Markets Sector See No Fraud Reduction Despite Regulatory Changes

A recent survey conducted by KPMG in India revealed that despite multiple regulatory changes in the country, the majority of respondents from the finance/compliance domain in the consumer markets sector believe that there has been no reduction in fraud. The survey involved more than 75 experts from organizations in the FMCG, consumer durables, agriculture, retail, and e-commerce industries and focused on their experiences with frauds and leakages.

According to the survey, 79% of the respondents stated that there has been no reduction in frauds despite regulatory changes, while only 21% reported a decrease in frauds due to the changes. The areas most susceptible to fraud were identified as procurement, sales and distribution, and e-commerce.

The survey also highlighted that 72% of the respondents considered reputational damage as the most severe impact of fraud, while 16% believed that financial losses also significantly impact organizations. Furthermore, 61% of the respondents believed that implementing a tech-based early warning signal mechanism is the most effective measure for detecting and mitigating fraud.

Mustafa Surka, Partner – Forensic Services at KPMG in India, emphasized the evolving nature of fraud in the rapidly transforming consumer markets sector. He stressed the importance for organizations to be agile and invest in technology and a robust monitoring mechanism to mitigate these leakages in a timely manner.