AI-driven cyberattacks pose growing threat to capital markets, warns NSE's Ashish Chauhan

Mumbai: As India's capital markets expand to unprecedented heights, escalating technological threats require immediate, proactive defence mechanisms across the financial ecosystem.

  Addressing market participants at the 16th ANMI International Capital Market Convention in Mumbai on Saturday, National Stock Exchange (NSE) Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Ashish Kumar Chauhan cautioned that emerging AI-driven cyber risks and quantum computing challenges present a critical test for market integrity. Highlighting the global severity of automated cyber threats, Chauhan cited recent international disruptions as a warning for Indian intermediaries.

  "Over the past few weeks, we have seen a wave of AI-driven cyber hacking globally. Japan declared a national emergency over cyber hacking, and major American banks faced sophisticated AI engine attacks on their infrastructure," Chauhan said, noting that NSE is continuously reviewing its infrastructure to patch vulnerabilities. To safeguard market participants from sophisticated cyber threats, the exchange chief called for an industry-wide collaborative defence framework.  "I request ANMI to set up a Special Task Force on Cybersecurity to ensure all members are guided, vulnerability-tested, and shielded against AI-driven hacking over the next 1 to 3 years," Chauhan urged, adding that quantum computing frameworks will soon challenge existing SSL cryptographic standards.

 Chauhan commended regulatory reforms spearheaded by SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey for lowering operational friction while maintaining robust market safeguards.

  "Reforms under his stewardship have placed market integrity and investor protection at the centre," he remarked, citing single common reporting platforms, extended reporting windows, and technical glitch reporting relief that benefited roughly 60 per cent of trading members. (ANI)

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