Bangladesh’s central bank is considering a lawsuit against the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRB NY) after unknown hackers stole $81 million from its account with the bank, Reuters reports.
{mosads}”We view this as a major lapse on the part of FRB NY,” Bangladesh Bank said in an internal report of the February incident.
According to the report, the hackers tried to issue 35 payment instructions to the New York Fed, 30 of which were denied. The U.S. banks says it followed normal procedures and there are no indications that its own systems were breached.
But the Bangladesh Bank is considering “preparing the ground to make a legitimate claim for the loss of funds against the FRB NY through a legal process,” the report reads.
The theft is thought to be one of the largest cyber heists in history. It prompted the resignation of central bank governor Atiur Rahman, and the FBI is currently assisting with the investigation.
The hackers also tried to transfer $20 million to an education nonprofit in Sri Lanka, but the transaction was held up because they misspelled the foundation’s name.