Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) has today been announced as a National Ambassador of the National Cyber Resilience Centre Group (NCRCG). In stepping into this role, the organisation will be joining together with other Ambassador partners, including Nationwide, NatWest and Microsoft, to help improve the cyber resilience of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across the UK.
LBG is a leading UK-based financial services group with over 325 years’ history and a unique family of household brands. As the nation’s largest digital bank, it serves 27 million customers and 2.2 million shareholders.
NCRCG forms part of the Cyber Resilience Centre (CRC) network alongside nine regional CRCs, located across England and Wales. Each police-led centre offers affordable, high-quality cyber guidance and advice to SMEs in their localities and acts as a trusted place SMEs can go to take proportionate steps to strengthen their cyber resilience. This ranges from providing access to webinars, podcasts and newsletters on essential topics like website security, to offering more specialist services such as Security Awareness Training for staff and Security Policy Review.
NCRCG, which sits at the national level, coordinates the National Ambassador programme, of which LBG is now proudly a part, to help grow this network for the benefit of the UK’s SMEs. As a National Ambassador, LBG is planning to roll out a campaign across its community of Relationship Managers to raise awareness of the support available from CRCs and how it can benefit their customers.
Paul Kempster, MD Commercial Banking Coverage at LBG, said:
“Small and medium-sized businesses are the backbone of the UK economy, yet they often face disproportionate risks from cyber threats. By becoming a National Ambassador for the National Cyber Resilience Centre Group, Lloyds Banking Group is stepping up to ensure SMEs have access to the tools, training, and trusted guidance they need to build stronger cyber defences.”
Matt Rowe, Chief Security Officer at LBG, said:
“We’re proud to join NCRCG as a National Ambassador and help strengthen cyber resilience among SMEs, who are vital to the UK economy. Through our partnership and longstanding involvement with the CRC network, we’ll help build a more informed and proactive approach to cyber resilience across our SME customer base to protect themselves and their customers in an increasingly digital world.”
Joanna Goddard, Chief Experience Officer at NCRCG, said:
“We are so pleased to be welcoming Lloyds Banking Group on board as a National Ambassador and to be able to draw on the expertise and reach of an institution that has been a long been a key fixture of the UK economy.
“In recent years, cyber resilience has only continued to move up the agenda as a national priority. Indeed, the forthcoming Cyber Security and Resilience Bill is a very welcome next step in helping to further safeguard the UK’s critical national infrastructure, however it is our SMEs which too often bear the brunt of cyber attacks. Representing over 99% of the business population, it is essential that we are doing all we can to embed cyber resilience across the SME economy and we are delighted to have the support of LBG in doing this.”
