Commercial Bank of Ethiopia ramps up cybersecurity investment

The Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) is scaling up its cybersecurity investments as its digital platforms now handle 92 percent of its total transactions, accounting for 73 percent of the country's annual digital transaction value. Bank President Abie Sano noted that with over 46 million digital banking users, the institution is integrating 24-hour security monitoring, artificial intelligence technologies, and a zero-trust security framework to protect infrastructure.

The bank did not disclose the specific budget allocated for these upgrades but emphasized that the expenditure is necessary to mitigate the risks of cyberattacks, fraud, and unauthorized access. As Ethiopia’s digital payment ecosystem expands, the CBE aims to safeguard customer trust and maintain the reliability of its systems through advanced layered defenses and biometric authentication methods.