REVOLUT FACES $3M RANSOM DEMAND AFTER CUSTOMER DATA BREACH

Revolut has confirmed that hackers gained access to personal data belonging to around 680 customers after impersonating an Italian government agency. The fintech company, which describes itself as Europe's largest, said the attackers compromised an Italian government email system to request customer details from its staff. A hacking group calling itself iamnotavillain has claimed responsibility and demanded a ransom of $3m in the cryptocurrency Monero, according to the Financial Times. The group reportedly published the demand on its own website alongside a countdown clock giving Revolut 24 hours to pay, threatening to sell the data to other criminal groups if it does not comply. A Revolut spokesperson said the company "has not received any direct contact or demand from the individuals or group making these claims".

The breach, which Revolut disclosed last Saturday, is believed to have targeted customers suspected of holding cryptocurrency. Leaked information reportedly included full names, dates of birth, occupations, addresses, contact details, passport and driving licence details, financial statements and facial verification images. The Financial Times said it contacted the group via Telegram and was sent a 60-second screen-capture video showing someone browsing the purported Revolut documents. One victim, Mark Karpelès, the former chief executive of the failed bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox, said he feared for his family's safety after his address appeared among the leaked files. Karpelès, who lives in Tokyo and has been a Revolut customer since 2023, said he had contacted law enforcement there and had earlier posted on X that he feared he could be "kidnapped or dead" before receiving further information from Revolut.

Revolut's founder, Nik Storonsky, told Les Echos that the company still planned a dual stock market listing in London and New York, though it is not clear how the reported breach might affect those plans. The company has also applied for a Swiss banking licence, saying it intends to invest more than 150m Swiss francs in Switzerland over the next five years, and received a full banking licence in France in August. Reports differ on the scale of Revolut's customer base, with one putting the figure at around 80 million global customers and another at more than 75 million worldwide. The hacking group told the Financial Times that its ransom demand was its first attempt to contact Revolut and that no negotiations had yet taken place.