Lloyds Banking Group is laying the groundwork to expand its corporate and institutional banking (CIB) arm as part of a wider strategic reset that is scheduled to be revealed this summer. According to people familiar with the matter, the move would involve increased lending to large corporate clients and a broader push to supply services to other financial institutions.
The bank's contemplated shift would also include strengthening its international footprint. Reportedly, this will involve growing a modest U.S. office and enhancing other overseas locations to better support British multinational clients with cross-border needs.
This emphasis on CIB marks a notable departure from Lloyds' recent strategic focus. In prior years the group concentrated on fortifying its retail-banking base while diversifying into customer pensions, investment products and insurance. The prospective change would reallocate attention and resources toward services geared to larger corporate and institutional customers.
The CIB division presently covers roughly 3,000 clients, each typically meeting a minimum turnover threshold of A3100 million. It delivers a suite of products and services that include debt capital markets, structured finance, foreign exchange hedging and acquisition financing. The client base spans large corporate entities, multinational asset managers, private equity sponsors and other substantial financial institutions.
Those with knowledge of the planning say Lloyds regards the CIB operation as a central engine for future growth. The expansion blueprint encompasses both the introduction of additional client services and scaling up of existing offerings to meet the needs of its target clientele.
Chief Executive Charlie Nunn is expected to present the full strategic package in July, when the bank will disclose details on execution and priorities. Until that announcement, the specifics of resource allocation and timelines remain limited to the information available from those briefed on the plans.
For market participants and corporate clients, the shift signals a reorientation in Lloyds' go-to-market posture - moving from a dominant retail and wealth focus toward a more pronounced role in large-scale corporate and institutional finance while incrementally expanding international capacity.