Sept 12 (Reuters) - Mastercard ( MA ) has agreed to buy

threat intelligence company Recorded Future from private equity

firm Insight Partners for $2.65 billion, the payments company

said on Thursday.

The acquisition will bring expanded threat intelligence

capabilities to the New York-based payments firm, which recorded

$9 trillion in gross dollar volumes last year, a metric that

represents the total dollar value of all transactions processed.

The rapid adoption of new technologies has upped the risk of

cyber threats, with companies increasingly facing hacking or

ransomware attacks. In June, Arkansas-based Evolve Bank

confirmed that it was a victim of a cybersecurity incident with

customer data illegally released on the dark web.

With threat actors looking at new ways to exploit

technology, Mastercard ( MA ) has been ramping up card fraud detection

by using generative artificial intelligence technology.

The company is already collaborating with Recorded Future,

which uses AI-powered analytics to identify potential threats,

on a service that alerts financial institutions when a card is

likely compromised.

Since the launch of the service earlier this year, it has

doubled the rate at which compromised cards are identified

compared to last year, Mastercard ( MA ) said.

The card company currently offers cybersecurity services

such as identity fraud prevention and real-time decision-making,

among others, to its clients.

In 2019, Insight Partners acquired a controlling interest in

Recorded Future - which serves over 1,900 clients across 75

countries, including the governments of 45 countries - in an

all-cash deal valued at more than $780 million.

The deal with Mastercard ( MA ) is expected to close by the first

quarter of 2025.