SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PREVENTING FRAUD IN REAL-TIME PAYMENT TRANSACTIONS

A system including one or more processors and one or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing computing instructions configured to run on the one or more processors and perform various acts. The acts can include receiving, in real-time and through a computer network, a payment authorization from a first financial institution. The payment authorization can comprise a payment amount, a recipient account indicator, and a fund withholding instruction for the payment amount and associated with a release condition for the payment amount. The acts also can include after receiving the payment authorization, instructing, through the computer network, a fund withholding financial institution to post the payment amount to a fund withholding account maintained by the fund withholding financial institution. The acts further can include receiving, through the computer network and from the fist financial institution, a release decision that is based on the release condition. When the release decision is to release the payment amount to the recipient, the acts also can include (a) instructing, through the computer network, the fund withholding financial institution to debit in real-time the payment amount from the fund withholding account after receiving the release decision, and (b) instructing, through the computer network, the second financial institution to post in real-time the payment amount to the recipient account after the payment amount is debited from the fund withholding account. Other embodiments are provided.