Yahoo Finance Lloyds Bank on 'heightened alert' for Russian cyber attacks
The UK's largest high street bank has said it is on "heightened alert" for Russian-sponsored cyber attacks following Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
Lloyds' chief executive, Charlie Nunn, said that although the lender's business is not particularly exposed to Russia, the threat of cyber attacks was discussed during a Downing Street meeting with bank bosses yesterday.
"We've been on heightened alert internally for a few months," he said, adding that all internal controls are now "heightened and elevated" with staff trained on the potential risks.
Andy Croft, chief of wealth manager St James’s Place, also warned it was “on high alert” for Russian-sponsored cyber attacks.
The FTSE 100 company said it was “acutely” aware of the heightened risks of such attacks taking place following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the likelihood of retaliatory attacks as the West imposes tough sanctions on the Kremlin.
Mr Croft said St James's Place had limited exposure to the financial fallout from the crisis, but did have some funds invested in Russian stocks and bonds.
Earlier this month banks were warned by the City watchdog to brace for cyber attacks from Russia. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) told bank chiefs that the financial industry was a likely target for retaliatory attacks if the West takes action against Russian companies or oligarchs.
The European Central Bank (ECB) has also reminded banks in recent weeks to keep up their cyber defences, with regulators likely to ramp up that message over the coming days after Russia launched its long-anticipated military operation in Ukraine on Thursday.
Mr Nunn's comments came as the bank posted full-year profits of £6.9bn for 2021, significantly up on the £1.2bn it reported a year earlier. It was boosted by the release of £1.2bn set aside for toxic Covid loans despite revealing that it took a £790m charge for the HBOS Reading bribery scandal.
Mr Nunn, a former HSBC banker, became chief executive of the lender last August, taking on one of the highest-profile jobs in British business after the former chief Sir Antonio Horta-Osorio left for Credit Suisse. Sir Antonio has since departed the Swiss bank after breaching Covid rules.
Mr Nunn on Thursday unveiled plans to pump £4bn into the business over the next five years, with a large portion targeting the "mass affluent" sector.
Mr Nunn was in charge of assets worth about $1.4 trillion at HSBC, taking control of a new division after the bank merged its money-spinning wealth and personal banking arms.
Lloyds became the first British lender to repay its bailout from the 2008 financial crisis, doing so in 2017 following one of the largest taxpayer rescues during the crash.
