Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

SWIFT says bank hacks intensifying

SWIFT, the system banks use to send payment instructions worth trillions of dollars each day, was hacked at least three times over the summer and cyber attacks on banks are set to intensify, the cooperative said on Monday (September 26).

The theft of $81 million in February from Bangladesh’s central bank using SWIFT messages rocked faith in the system whose messages had, until then, been accepted at face value.


SWIFT chief executive Gottfried Leibbrandt told the Sibos conference in Geneva that hackers successfully breached the systems of two banks over the summer and a third bank repelled an attack before fraudulent SWIFT messages could be sent.

In the two cases where hackers sent payment instructions over SWIFT, the orders were not fulfilled because the receiving banks thought they did not conform with normal message patterns and questioned them.

In the third case, the bank had installed a patch from SWIFT which allowed the lender’s system to spot the infiltration.

“In all of those cases no money was lost,” Leibbrandt said.

The Belgium-based cooperative, which is owned by banks, said it was introducing a set of mandatory security measures in response to the attacks which customers were expected to take to safeguard their systems against cyber heists.

Customers will be required to show each year that they have checked 16 mandatory controls. In 2018, SWIFT will inspect clients and if they do not comply with the standards, the cooperative will inform the non-compliant bank’s counterparties and regulators.

Leibbrandt declined to comment when asked by reporters if SWIFT would boot non-compliant banks off the system.

SWIFT chairman Yawar Shah told the conference that the threat of cyber attacks was going to get worse and that banks needed to tighten their security practices.

“This rapidly evolving threat is a game changer,” he said.

More For You

Anil Agarwal

Vedanta Resources, which is based in the UK and owned by Indian billionaire Anil Agarwal, has been working on reducing its debt. (Photo credit: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta Resources signs £438 million refinancing deal

VEDANTA LTD said on Thursday that its parent company, Vedanta Resources, has signed a loan facility agreement worth up to £438 million with international banks to refinance existing debt.

The refinancing move, where old loans are replaced by new ones, often at better terms like lower interest rates, has led ratings agencies such as S&P Global Ratings and Moody's to upgrade their outlook on the company this year.

Keep ReadingShow less
Trump-Getty

Trump said that while deals are being made with some countries, others may face tariffs.

Getty Images

Trump says major trade deal with India may be finalised soon

US PRESIDENT Donald Trump on Friday said a "very big" trade deal could be finalised with India, suggesting significant movement in the ongoing negotiations between the two countries.

“We are having some great deals. We have one coming up, maybe with India. Very big one. Where we're going to open up India," Trump said at the “Big Beautiful Bill” event at the White House.

Keep ReadingShow less
Asda suffers nearly £600m loss as debt and IT costs surge

Asda co-ownerMohsin Issa. (Photo: Asda)

Asda suffers nearly £600m loss as debt and IT costs surge

ASDA, one of Britain’s largest supermarkets, has reported a pre-tax loss of £599 million for 2024, swinging sharply from a £180 million profit the previous year.

The loss comes despite total sales rising by over £1 billion to £26.8bn, as the retailer faces mounting debt costs, falling sales, and spiralling spending on a major IT overhaul, the Telegraph reported.

Keep ReadingShow less
Mounjaro

Mounjaro, or tirzepatide, is part of a new class of weight-loss medications, with trials showing patients losing an average of 20 per cent of their body weight after 72 weeks.

Reuters

Lilly to sell Mounjaro pens in India as Wegovy enters market

ELI LILLY said on Thursday that it has received approval from India's drug regulator to launch pre-filled injector pens of its weight-loss drug, Mounjaro.

The move gives the company more options to compete with Novo Nordisk, which recently launched its weight-loss drug Wegovy in the country.

Keep ReadingShow less
Grant Thornton's Anuj Chande urges UK firms to tap booming India

Anuj Chande

Grant Thornton's Anuj Chande urges UK firms to tap booming India

INDIAN companies are well placed to support the UK’s economic growth, Eastern Eye has been told by Anuj Chande, partner and head of the South Asia Business Group at Grant Thornton.

He was speaking after the publication of Grant Thornton’s India Meets Britain Tracker 2025: The latest trends in Indian investment in the UK, which was released last week. While companies in India need little encouragement to enter the UK market, the reverse is not true.

Keep ReadingShow less