January 25, 2024 at 09:03AM
EquiLend, a major US securities lender, has suffered a cybersecurity incident leading to unauthorized access to its systems. The company is working to restore services, with experts speculating on the impact of manual operations. Founded in 2001, EquiLend’s Next Generation Trading platform is used by over 120 companies across 40 markets, transacting $113.5 billion daily. This incident follows recent cyberattacks on other US financial companies.
Based on the meeting notes, the key takeaways are:
– EquiLend experienced a cybersecurity incident on January 22, 2024, where an attacker gained unauthorized access to its systems.
– The company has taken its systems offline and is working with external cybersecurity firms and professional advisers to investigate and restore services, which may take several days.
– The impact of the incident has led EquiLend staff to resort to manual operations while systems are being restored, potentially affecting order disruption and service quality.
– LockBit, a ransomware outfit, has claimed responsibility for the attack and is reportedly in negotiations with EquiLend.
– EquiLend is a prominent securities lending trading platform used by over 120 companies across more than 40 markets, transacting $113.5 billion daily.
– The cybersecurity incident occurred close to EquiLend’s agreement to sell a majority stake to private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson, and Stowe, with the deal set to close in Q4 2024.
– This incident follows recent cyberattacks on other US finance companies, including Fidelity National Financial, Mr Cooper, and loanDepot, potentially indicating a concerning trend in the industry.
– If LockBit is confirmed to be behind the attack, it would be their second major attack on a major fintech company in as many years, following their reported attack on ION Group in early 2023.