Fraud is currently costing businesses an estimated £14bn a year, according to Steven Philippsohn of the Fraud Advisory Panel.
Speaking at a CreditUK industry event, fraud experts from the police, the financial services and the legal professions said the government's efforts to stop the rise in business fraud were failing.
They said this was due to a combination of ineffective legislation and insufficient resources.
According to Philippsohn, legislation designed to help businesses prevent and detect fraud has only partially been successful. "It is still the case that almost half of all frauds are only discovered by accident," he said.
Detective Chief Superintendent Ken Farrow, head of the Economic Crime Department in the City said many frauds across the country were never investigated through lack of resources.
At the last count there were only 600 officers across the country specifically dealing with economic crime, added Farrow.
