PayNow nickname feature to cease from Jun. 6, 2026 to combat impersonation scams

The PayNow nickname feature for retail customers will be discontinued with effect from Jun. 6, 2026 to strengthen protection against impersonation scams.

The Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) announced the change on Apr. 29, saying PayNow users will be assured that the name of the retail payee displayed before a payment is made is not a nickname chosen by the payee.

Only selected letters of the payee's name will be shown to the payer to safeguard customer privacy, ABS said.

"This approach balances the use of real names as a safeguard against account impersonation, while being mindful of privacy considerations," ABS said.

Preventing scams

The change comes amid the current scam landscape, ABS said, adding that the change is essential to safeguard the interests of PayNow users against scammers.

Previously, scammers could exploit the PayNow nickname feature by using the names of established entities or trusted individuals as their PayNow nicknames, enabling them to deceive victims into transferring money to fraudulent accounts, ABS explained.

"With this enhanced security measure, scammers will no longer be able to masquerade as legitimate entities or persons, significantly reducing their ability to deceive unsuspecting users through PayNow," they added.

The nickname feature has been available since PayNow was launched in 2017.

It was meant to address privacy concerns from customers who preferred not to display their registered account names when receiving payments via their mobile number or NRIC numbers.

No action needed by customer

Currently, a retail customer's name that is linked to their registered account is displayed to the payer by default, unless the customer sets a PayNow nickname.

From Jun. 6, 2026, all display names will be automatically updated to reflect selected letters of a retail payee's registered account name with their financial institution during PayNow transfers.

No action is needed by customers, and all other aspects of receiving and transferring money via PayNow remain unchanged, ABS said.

Here is an illustration of what the payer will see when initiating a PayNow transfer to a retail payee from Jun. 6:

Meanwhile, businesses using PayNow to receive payments via their UEN do not have access to the PayNow nickname feature and are unable to modify their registered account names.