diff --git a/aries_cloudagent/protocols/issue_credential/v2_0/models/cred_ex_record.py b/aries_cloudagent/protocols/issue_credential/v2_0/models/cred_ex_record.py
index 15ab3cce7b..7e853f36d4 100644
--- a/aries_cloudagent/protocols/issue_credential/v2_0/models/cred_ex_record.py
+++ b/aries_cloudagent/protocols/issue_credential/v2_0/models/cred_ex_record.py
@@ -201,7 +201,7 @@ async def emit_event(self, session: ProfileSession, payload: Any = None):
         # serialize payload before checking for webhook contents
         if not payload:
             payload = self.serialize()
-        else:
+        if not session.profile.settings.get("debug.webhooks"):
             payload = V20CredExRecordWebhook(**payload)
             payload = payload.__dict__