Hacker-for-Hire Accused of Aiding Saudis Is Worrying Wall Street
- Lenders demand premium to fund management buyout of NSO Group
- Israeli firm’s software allegedly used to target dissidents
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It helped Mexico track down El Chapo, but it’s also been accused of assisting Saudi Arabia spy on dissidents.
Now NSO Group, hackers-for-hire likened to a private intelligence service, has become a strain for two Wall Street banks that helped fund a buyout of the Israel-based company last month. After struggling to find buyers for a $500 million loan that they agreed to provide, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. and Credit Suisse Group AG had to come up with the cash themselves and are now unloading the debt at a steep discount, according to people with knowledge of the matter.