IMF warns cyberattacks could trigger wider financial crisis as AI threats grow

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that cyberattacks pose a growing threat to global financial stability, cautioning that a major breach involving a bank, payment system or critical technology provider could disrupt essential financial services and spread instability across markets.

The Fund said the increasing digitalisation and interconnectedness of financial services had made cyber threats more dangerous, particularly when an attack on one institution or service provider could affect other parts of the financial system.

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The IMF identified cyberattacks, an artificial intelligence-driven market correction and a sharper rise in government bond yields as three major risks facing global financial markets. It warned that existing vulnerabilities, including high borrowing levels, limited liquidity and strong connections between markets, could magnify the impact of these threats.

As finance becomes more digital and interconnected, cyber disruptions have emerged as a growing source of systemic risk, the IMF said.

The Fund cautioned that a major cyber incident could interrupt payment services, trading activities, access to bank deposits and other critical financial operations.

It said the danger was particularly serious if an attack targeted a major financial institution, payment system, cloud provider or software platform, potentially allowing the disruption to spread across the wider financial system.

The IMF also highlighted the growing speed at which cybercriminals could exploit software vulnerabilities.

It disclosed that in more than 70 per cent of reported cases so far in 2026, software providers had almost no time to fix vulnerabilities before attackers exploited them. The figure is more than double the share recorded in 2021, when providers typically had close to 300 days to address vulnerabilities.

Frontier AI models could accelerate both attacks and defences, the Fund said, stressing the need for stronger cyber resilience, improved incident reporting, crisis preparedness and closer oversight of critical third-party service providers.

The IMF urged policymakers to strengthen cyber defences alongside broader measures to protect financial stability. It called for better incident reporting and resilience testing among financial institutions, while warning that governments had less room to respond to major shocks because of high public debt, renewed inflationary pressures and rising borrowing costs.

The Fund further advised emerging and developing economies to rebuild financial buffers while conditions remained relatively favourable, arguing that proactive measures would help them withstand future shocks.

It said policymakers must address vulnerabilities before they develop into wider financial crises.

ANAS/MA

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