Benzinga spoke with Mehrak Hamzeh, the chief technology officer of AppTech Payments Corp APCX, about the future of fintech.

"Fraud prevention and AI are essential," Hamzeh says. "We can monitor behaviors, detect unusual activities like keystrokes or device orientation, flag anomalies, and raise alerts for fraudulent activities."

Here's an edited transcript of the conversation.

Benzinga: Nice to meet you, Mehrak! Please share a bit about yourself, where you come from and where you went to school.

Hamzeh: I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and studied management information systems at California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo).

How did you end up doing what you are doing now?

At my school's career center, I overheard a conversation. Someone asked: "Are you so-and-so?" Without missing a beat, I replied: "No, but I could be."

That’s how I ended up at Silicon Valley Bank, joining their venture capital team under the wing of Greg Becker. I read like 100 business plans a week. I left six months afterward to start Globaltel Media, which AppTech eventually acquired.

This set the foundation for what we currently regard as the cornerstone of mobile payments, completely transforming transaction security.

So, what does your role entail?

I am scouting fresh deals, evaluating technologies and markets, aligning our technology with market demands, and creating new revenue streams.

We're launching InstaCash, which has partnerships across various sectors, from airports to healthcare and banking.

We've got our patented two-way SMS and mobile payments. When you receive a text message asking whether you transacted at Taco Bell, a "no" immediately halts the transaction. You build mobile payments and put this intellectual property inside.

I constantly seek new partnerships, evaluate incoming intellectual property and acquire patent portfolios, including, for example, the patent for Uber's ordering anything for delivery.

Tell me a little bit about AppTech's potential.

Traditional payment companies operate in a static 1-to-1 model, generating revenue in line with their market capitalization.

For us, the potential for exponential growth is evident. We’re not just a payment company. We're a global fintech platform across various sectors. That's the difference.

What's the latest among the inbound leads you receive?

Clients want banking and payment functionalities in a single platform with lower fees. We facilitate direct ledger-to-ledger transfers between parties, reducing or removing fees altogether.

This is crucial for businesses, gig workers and immigrant families, where every penny saved counts. Growing up in a family where every penny mattered, I understand the significance of savings.

Fraud prevention and AI are essential, too. We can monitor behaviors, detect unusual activities like keystrokes or device orientation, flag anomalies and raise alerts for fraudulent activities deviating from thresholds based on normal behavior patterns.

Looking out a year from now, what do you envision for yourself and the company?

My excitement lies in using technology to drive innovation. Our success is not just for ourselves but also for our shareholders and investors.

The growth potential is substantial and notable institutions like Blackrock and Vanguard are already investing.

Over the next 24 months, we aim to onboard 100 companies into our portfolio, each targeting a specific vertical with the potential for significant monthly revenue. Other companies may focus solely on payments, but we’re driven to expand in new markets.

We’re a publicly traded entity providing the world access to our private ventures through a public platform.

Anything else to add?

Each vertical market presents immense potential, propelling us towards our vision of becoming a multi-billion-dollar conglomerate.

For example, Starbucks is one of the premier mobile payment platforms globally. We’ve devised a solution that transcends its limitations so you can spend at In-N-Out, Burger King or McDonald’s. We will liberate users from being tethered to a single platform.

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