IMF: Global financial institutions lose $12B to cyberattacks in 20 years

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revealed that financial institutions  lost a total of $12 billion to cyberattacks in the last 20 years.

Out of this amount, $2.5 billion was lost between 2020 and 2024, according to IMF’s April 2024 Global Financial Stability Report  released recently. This is even as the body expressed concern that the rising incidents of cyberattacks on financial institutions globally could affect confidence in the financial system and destabilize economies.

• “Financial firms have reported significant direct losses, totaling almost $12 billion since 2004 and $2.5 billion since 2020,” the IMF stated.

Banks as primary target

According to the body, financial firms, given the large amounts of sensitive data and transactions they handle, are often targeted by criminals seeking to steal money or disrupt economic activity.

• “Attacks on financial firms account for nearly one-fifth of the total, of which banks are the most exposed. Incidents in the financial sector could threaten financial and economic stability if they erode confidence in the financial system, disrupt critical services, or cause spillovers to other institutions. 
• Cyber incidents that disrupt critical services like payment networks could also severely affect economic activity. For example, a December attack at the Central Bank of Lesotho disrupted the national payment system, preventing transactions by domestic banks,” IMF stated.
• “Financial institutions in advanced economies, particularly in the United States, have been more exposed to cyber incidents than firms in emerging market and developing economies,” it added.