“The threat isn’t the arrival of quantum computing – it’s the assumption that you still have time.”
In financial services, the infrastructure behind digital trust is cracking under pressure. Now, another shift is forcing security leaders to confront a deeper challenge: post-quantum cryptography (PQC).
Let’s be honest. PQC sounds like another “security problem to figure out later.” But the real risk isn’t waiting for quantum to break your encryption – it’s failing to prepare before regulators and customers ask you if you’ve already started.
Let’s unpack the “why now,” the potential damage, and a roadmap you can act on – before your organization finds itself reacting too late.
A Quantum-Enabled Breach in 2025? Here’s What That Could Look Like
Imagine this scenario:
- A malicious actor has been quietly harvesting encrypted data from your organization’s cloud backups for months.
- You pass your audit. All looks good.
- In 2030, quantum computing crosses the cryptographic threshold – suddenly, every one of those encrypted files is readable.
- The stolen data includes transaction logs, customer identity packets, and confidential communications between systems.
- You notify regulators, but they want to know why you had no migration plan, despite years of guidance.
This isn’t a science-fiction thriller. It’s what NIST and financial regulators call a “harvest-now, decrypt-later” attack, and why guidance on how to address these and other quantum threats is already out there and being implemented by the world’s largest banks.
In other words, quantum risk has already begun. And the audit trail? That’s being written right now.
But Isn’t Quantum Still 5–10 Years Away?
Yes – and that’s exactly the point. You need that time to prepare.
Just like digital transformation wasn’t about doing everything overnight, PQC readiness is about making forward-compatible moves now so your infrastructure doesn’t need a ground-up overhaul later.
From the Security Leader’s Digital Trust Playbook:
“The real deadline for post-quantum isn’t when the tech arrives. It’s when auditors and regulators begin asking how you plan to protect data that lives beyond the crypto shelf life of today’s algorithms.”
Spoiler: Auditors and regulators already are.
- NIST has selected its first post-quantum algorithms.
- The FDIC issued PQC guidance for financial institutions in late 2023.
- EU regulators have referenced crypto-agility in DORA enforcement language.
Crypto-Agility Means Preparedness.
Crypto-agility isn’t a buzzword—it’s your bank’s ability to swap cryptographic algorithms quickly and confidently, without downtime or risk.
That starts with visibility: You can’t migrate what you can’t see.
In our recent research, less than 25% of FinServ organizations could accurately inventory where vulnerable algorithms like RSA and ECC are used across:
- TLS connections
- App-level signing mechanisms
- Service mesh authentication
- Customer APIs
- Developer toolchain
If your infrastructure is full of hardcoded cryptography – and no one knows who owns what – you’ve already lost.
A 4-Step Roadmap to Post-Quantum Readiness
Here’s a simplified version of what we recommend in our full digital trust playbook.
- Inventory Cryptographic Assets
Discover every certificate, key, and signing process across all cloud, on-prem, and DevOps environments.
- Classify Algorithm Risk
Identify which assets use quantum-vulnerable algorithms (RSA, ECC) and prioritize based on lifespan and sensitivity.
- Establish Crypto-Agility Standards
Ensure new systems support hybrid certificates (classical + PQC), flexible policy enforcement, and automated renewal.
- Test in Low-Risk Environments
Don’t wait for a sweeping migration. Start with controlled use cases, like code signing or internal APIs, where you can test PQC readiness safely.
Get Hands-On With Keyfactor
Keyfactor is trusted because our experts don’t just scan your environment and hand you a slide deck. We help you:
- Build a working crypto-inventory
- Identify shadow or rogue certs
- Deploy hybrid certs that support PQC
- Create audit-ready evidence of crypto-agility
We’ve helped global banks start their journey without disruption – and without breaking the tools they already use.
From Trust to Transformation
In Blog 1 in our special series devoted to financial services, we covered how digital trust has become a foundation for growth, especially during M&A and DevOps expansion. But PQC forces us to think bigger.
And here’s the big takeaway: The banks that win tomorrow are the ones preparing now.
📥 Want the full roadmap now?
Curious what preparation looks like? Download The Security Leader’s Digital Trust Playbook: Financial Services Edition today.
Have questions for our security team? Reach out here with any questions — we’re here to help!
