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Financial firms reported almost $12 billion in direct losses from cyber incidents between 2004 and 2023, according to the International Monetary Fund’s April 2024 Global Financial Stability Report. Of that amount, $2.5 billion was reported since 2020. These are reported direct losses—not a complete measure of cybercrime’s economic cost, and not a running total through 2026.
What the IMF’s nearly $12 billion figure measures
The IMF’s estimate is based on reported direct losses from incidents affecting financial firms in the report’s 2004–2023 observation window. The chapter identifies Advisen Cyber Loss Data, the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation, and IMF staff calculations as sources for its figures. Read Chapter 3 of the IMF’s April 2024 Global Financial Stability Report.
“Direct reported losses” is narrower than the full damage an attack can cause. The IMF says firms typically do not report indirect costs such as lost business, reputational harm, and later investment in security. Some effects are difficult to measure or emerge over time, so the nearly $12 billion should not be treated as an all-in estimate of financial-sector cyber harm.
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Nearly one-fifth of reported cyber incidents over the prior two decades affected the financial sector, according to the IMF. Within finance, banks were the most frequent targets, followed by insurers and asset managers. These figures describe the report’s dataset; they do not show that other sectors or financial subsectors are safe.
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The report found that advanced-economy institutions, particularly those in the United States, were more exposed in its data than firms in emerging-market and developing economies. That is a comparison within the available data, not evidence that cyber risk is confined to advanced economies.
The IMF’s companion summary says cyberattacks have more than doubled since the pandemic and that extreme losses rose more than fourfold since 2017 to $2.5 billion. That extreme-loss figure is distinct from the cumulative nearly $12 billion in direct reported losses; the two should not be conflated. The summary also says about half of surveyed countries had a national financial-sector cybersecurity strategy or dedicated cybersecurity regulations. This is a survey result, not a comprehensive census of every jurisdiction. Read the IMF’s April 9, 2024 summary of rising cyber threats.
How an attack on one firm could affect the wider system
The IMF says incidents had not yet become systemic at the time of its April 2024 report, even as the likelihood of severe incidents and their potential macrofinancial effects increased. A firm-level attack could spread more broadly through three channels:
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- Service disruption: Interruptions to payments or other critical services can affect customers and institutions that depend on them.
- Interconnectedness: Technology and financial links can transmit disruption between firms, potentially creating funding pressure or solvency concerns.
Shared technology providers can concentrate exposure: one provider’s failure or compromise may disrupt multiple institutions at once. The IMF cites a 2023 ransomware attack on a cloud IT service provider that caused simultaneous outages at 60 US credit unions. It also notes that attacks can originate outside a firm’s home country and that proceeds may cross borders.
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The IMF’s blog describes modest, somewhat persistent deposit outflows at smaller US banks following cyberattacks, while reporting that no significant “cyber runs” had occurred at the time. That distinction matters: the report identifies a possible confidence channel, not evidence that cyberattacks had already triggered major runs.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the IMF recommends financial firms and authorities do
The IMF’s response is institutional rather than consumer-focused. It calls for stronger cybersecurity governance, information sharing, incident reporting, skilled personnel, and tested plans for responding to and recovering from attacks.
For firms and their boards
- Make boards accountable for cybersecurity governance and for fostering risk culture, cyber hygiene, and training.
- Give board members access to cybersecurity expertise.
- Use practical hygiene measures, including antimalware and multifactor authentication.
- Develop and test response and recovery procedures rather than assuming written plans will work in a crisis.
For supervisors and public authorities
- Strengthen national cybersecurity strategies and regulatory and supervisory frameworks.
- Improve domestic and international information sharing and incident reporting.
- Build cybersecurity workforce capacity.
- Establish response protocols and crisis-management frameworks for severe incidents.
These are risk-reduction measures, not guarantees that an incident can be prevented. The IMF’s policy discussion appears in The Last Mile: Financial Vulnerabilities and Risks, the April 2024 report overview and policy context.
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