Australian bank Westpac has increased its stake in a cybersecurity firm which has developed a unique military-grade encryption technology. Is this the start of a new trend?
Westpac first took a stake in QuintessenceLabs in 2015, which initially boosted the bank’s security capabilities and provided it with a pipeline of innovations being developed by the firm in Australia and United States.
Since then, the organisations have worked to develop cybersecurity products for the financial services industry.
Westpac has exercised an option to increase its 10.8 percent stake acquired in 2015 to 15.3 percent. With the new investment QuintessenceLabs is planning to roll out its cybersecurity product to global banks.
«As a major financial institution, data security and protecting our customers is of paramount importance,» said Dave Curran, (pictured) Westpac Group Chief Innovation Officer.
Under the expanded agreement, Quintessence Labs will provide Westpac and its partners with quantum cybersecurity services including advanced key management and policy management solutions, the bank said in a statement.
These are designed to reduce the risk of identity theft, customer data breaches and privacy concerns.
