Sri Lanka, April 25 -- The theft of US $ 2.5 million by cybercriminals who breached the computer systems of the Finance Ministry has come under the spotlight of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is closely watching the situation, a spokesperson said.

In responding to a question by the Daily Mirror, an IMF spokesman said the IMF had taken note of this development.

"We are aware of the statement issued by Sri Lanka's Ministry of Finance confirming unauthorised access to the computer systems of ERD. We take note of this important development and are closely monitoring the situation," the spokesman said.

The funds were meant for repayment of debt to Australia. Sri Lanka is currently recovering from its worst-ever economic crisi...