Switzerland's financial market watchdog FINMA issued a warning on the growing risks posed by artificial intelligence and a sharp rise in cyber attacks against the country's banking sector.
Marlene Amstad, who chairs FINMA, said the regulator had observed "a marked increase in cyber attacks – amounting to a third – across all the financial institutions we supervise." She added that "the threat posed by highly developed AI affects the entire sector," noting that the responsibility for cybersecurity ultimately lies with bank management.
According to FINMA, malicious actors are now deploying generative-AI tools from companies including OpenAI and Anthropic to automate fraud and breach institutional defences at machine speed. The regulator signalled it would no longer offer extensive guidance, instead placing the full weight of operational-risk accountability directly on bank boards.
In a separate development, the Federal Office for Information Technology disclosed a recent breach of its SharePoint servers, underscoring the breadth of the threat landscape beyond the financial system alone.
Looking ahead, FINMA also flagged quantum computing as an emerging risk, warning that the sector will eventually need to adopt quantum-resistant cryptography to stay protected.
By the numbers, nearly one attack on critical infrastructure was reported every day, with 325 incidents recorded overall. The article was published on August 17, 2026, drawing on reporting from SWI swissinfo.ch.
