HSBC and Quantinuum Explore Real World Use Cases of Quantum Computing in Financial Services

May 30, 2023

Multi-stage project by Quantinuum and HSBC will research several quantum topic areas, including cybersecurity, fraud detection, and natural language processing

CAMBRIDGE, UK, BROOMFIELD, CO, May 30th, 2023 – Quantinuum, the world’s largest quantum computing company, and HSBC are pleased to announce a series of exploratory projects that exploit the potential near- and long-term benefits of quantum computing for banking with specific projects in cybersecurity, fraud detection, and natural language processing.

Philip Intallura, Global Head of Quantum Technologies at HSBC said “We are excited to embark on this partnership with Quantinuum and explore the further applications of Quantum technology in the Financial Services sector. Our collaboration provides us a great opportunity to access cutting-edge quantum hardware and take our use cases to a truly transformational level. We are looking forward to seeing the results of our joint work and bring long-term value to the bank.”

“Our collaboration with HSBC brings together a deep expertise in the application of quantum computing across a set of areas that are critical in global finance, such as protecting vital data and assets, managing risk, and creating first-of-its-kind customer service approaches. As we move towards quantum computers that simply cannot be simulated by classical computers, customers will benefit from significant value in terms of innovation, knowledge.” said Ilyas Khan, Chief Product Officer of Quantinuum.

Strengthening Cybersecurity

An initial exploration of the multi-stage collaboration is intended to demonstrate the use of quantum computing-hardened cryptographic keys, including uniquely combining them with post-quantum cryptographic algorithms to mitigate current and future cyber threats. This effort to strengthen resiliency against advanced cyber threats is increasingly critical as the transition point between the capabilities of classical and quantum computers continues to approach.

Quantinuum’s Quantum Origin is a cutting-edge platform that uses the operations of a quantum computer to strengthen the cryptographic keys that are used to protect transactions and identification processes. Quantum Origin is deployed on existing “classical” cybersecurity infrastructure and is the first commercial product on the market that uses a quantum computer to produce provably unpredictable cryptographic keys, which could offer an extra layer of security to protect HSBC’s most valuable data. HSBC and Quantinuum will run Quantum Origin via an HSM provider.

Building A Quantum Business Advantage

In a second part of the collaboration, HSBC and Quantinuum will research and explore the potential benefits of quantum machine learning (QML) and quantum natural language processing (QNLP) for HSBC's business. With fraud detection as an HSBC priority, the collaboration will examine advanced QML techniques that are enhanced by qubit routing and circuit optimization techniques provided by Quantinuum’s architecture-independent software development platform, TKET.

Additionally, HSBC and Quantinuum will explore QNLP, which is a novel form of language-based AI that uses an explainable model, rather than the "black box" methods of traditional classical large-language models. QNLP will be based on training quantum states and processes that encode word meanings. This approach may enable native NLP tasks such as question answering or text similarity, which could be valuable in regulated markets dealing with customer data.

Through this research collaboration, HSBC and Quantinuum are positioned to be at the forefront of developing and implementing quantum-based solutions that have the potential to revolutionize the banking industry.

For more information, please visit www.quantinuum.com.

About Quantinuum

Quantinuum is the world’s largest quantum computing company, formed by the combination of Honeywell Quantum Solutions’ world-leading hardware and Cambridge Quantum’s class-leading middleware and applications. Science-led and enterprise driven, Quantinuum accelerates quantum computing and the development of applications across AI, chemistry, cybersecurity, finance, and optimization. Its focus is to create scalable and commercial quantum solutions to solve the world’s most pressing problems, in fields such as energy, logistics, climate change, and health. The company employs over 480 people including 350 scientists, at nine sites in the US, Europe, and Japan.

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Kaniah Konkoly-Thege

Kaniah is Chief Legal Counsel and SVP of Government Relations for Quantinuum. In her previous role, she served as General Counsel, Honeywell Quantum Solutions. Prior to Honeywell, she was General Counsel, Honeywell Federal Manufacturing and Technologies, LLC, and Senior Attorney, U.S. Department of Energy. She was Lead Counsel before the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals, the Merit Systems Protection Board, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Kaniah holds a J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law and B.A., International Relations and Spanish from the College of William and Mary.

Jeff Miller

Jeff Miller is Chief Information Officer for Quantinuum. In his previous role, he served as CIO for Honeywell Quantum Solutions and led a cross-functional team responsible for Information Technology, Cybersecurity, and Physical Security. For Honeywell, Jeff has held numerous management and executive roles in Information Technology, Security, Integrated Supply Chain and Program Management. Jeff holds a B.S., Computer Science, University of Arizona. He is a veteran of the U.S. Navy, attaining the rank of Commander.

Matthew Bohne

Matthew Bohne is the Vice President & Chief Product Security Officer for Honeywell Corporation. He is a passionate cybersecurity leader and executive with a proven track record of building and leading cybersecurity organizations securing energy, industrial, buildings, nuclear, pharmaceutical, and consumer sectors. He is a sought-after expert with deep experience in DevSecOps, critical infrastructure, software engineering, secure SDLC, supply chain security, privacy, and risk management.

Todd Moore

Todd Moore is the Global Vice President of Data Encryption Products at Thales. He is responsible for setting the business line and go to market strategies for an industry leading cybersecurity business. He routinely helps enterprises build solutions for a wide range of complex data security problems and use cases. Todd holds several management and technical degrees from the University of Virginia, Rochester Institute of Technology, Cornell University and Ithaca College. He is active in his community, loves to travel and spends much of his free time supporting his family in pursuing their various passions.

John Davis

Retired U.S. Army Major General John Davis is the Vice President, Public Sector for Palo Alto Networks, where he is responsible for expanding cybersecurity initiatives and global policy for the international public sector and assisting governments around the world to prevent successful cyber breaches. Prior to joining Palo Alto Networks, John served as the Senior Military Advisor for Cyber to the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and served as the Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Cyber Policy.  Prior to this assignment, he served in multiple leadership positions in special operations, cyber, and information operations.