Swiss regulator urges rapid AI adoption to counter cyber risks

Key facts

• Financial regulators and banks must adopt new technology to counter AI-amplified cybersecurity risks.
• FINMA President Marlene Amstad emphasized the need for rapid adaptation to patch vulnerabilities.
• A hackathon brought together policy and technology specialists to build AI tools for crypto-market supervision.
• Regulators are exploring embedding safeguards directly into digital asset systems.
• AI-related operational risks have been exposed by models like Anthropic's Mythos.

Financial regulators and institutions must accelerate the adoption of new technologies to combat the escalating cybersecurity risks posed by artificial intelligence, according to Marlene Amstad, president of Swiss market regulator FINMA. Amstad stated in an interview that as cyber threats evolve rapidly, banks need to adapt by patching vulnerabilities more quickly.

FINMA has been instrumental in establishing a forum within the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) to encourage market supervisors, who collectively oversee approximately 95% of global financial markets, to embrace AI. This initiative aims to bolster supervisory capabilities in the face of increasingly sophisticated threats.

Recently, around 100 policy and technology specialists convened for a hackathon focused on jointly developing tools for crypto-market supervision. Amstad indicated that regulators are considering integrating safeguards directly into digital asset systems. The use of AI models, such as Anthropic's Mythos, has already revealed vulnerabilities and operational risks, prompting concerns.

The U.S. government has taken action, ordering Anthropic to halt exports of its latest AI models, Mythos and Fable, due to national security concerns. In response, Chinese cybersecurity firm 360 Security Technology announced the development of a domestic alternative. Amstad stressed Switzerland's need to maintain access to advanced AI models to strengthen systems before deployment.