The Czech Republic’s banking sector operates within one of Central Europe’s most mature and highly regulated financial ecosystems. As banks expand digital services, cloud adoption, and cross-border financial infrastructure, cybersecurity leadership has become fundamental to operational resilience and regulatory compliance. The leaders featured here are responsible for protecting sensitive financial systems, securing customer data, and ensuring that banking institutions remain resilient against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats.
Patrik Šebest — Chief Information Security Officer, Trinity Bank a.s.
Patrik Šebest brings extensive financial sector security leadership experience shaped by both multinational banking environments and enterprise security roles. Prior to becoming Chief Information Security Officer at Trinity Bank, he served as Global Security Officer at BNP Paribas Cardif, where he led security operations across the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Austria. In that role, he oversaw incident management, vulnerability remediation, business continuity planning, and security governance across multiple jurisdictions. Earlier, as Information Security Manager for Central Europe at Tesco, he managed security risk across four countries, supporting forensic investigations, implementing mitigation strategies, and strengthening regional security posture. His background combines operational security leadership with forensic expertise, supported by EnCase forensic certification and hands-on incident response experience.
Tomáš Klíma, Ph.D. — Deputy Chief Information Security Officer, Czech National Bank
Tomáš Klíma plays a central role in protecting the Czech Republic’s national financial infrastructure through his leadership at the Czech National Bank. Prior to becoming Deputy Chief Information Security Officer, he held senior security expert roles within the institution, where he led penetration testing programs, vulnerability management initiatives, and security assessment methodologies. His work included overseeing countermeasure implementation, developing security training programs, and supervising incident response processes across critical financial systems. He is also the creator of the PETA methodology for managing penetration testing and has contributed to advancing cybersecurity practices through research, conference presentations, and mentorship within the security community.
Martin Dvořák — Chief Information Security Officer, Modrá pyramida stavební spořitelna a.s.
Martin Dvořák’s cybersecurity leadership is rooted in more than two decades at Komerční banka, one of the Czech Republic’s largest banking institutions. Before becoming Chief Information Security Officer at Modrá pyramida, he served as Head of the Security Operations Center at Komerční banka, where he led teams responsible for identity and access management, privileged access control, vulnerability detection, and incident response. Earlier roles included security architecture leadership and identity management implementation, giving him deep technical and operational insight into protecting complex banking environments. His experience spans security monitoring, regulatory compliance, and operational risk management, positioning him to lead enterprise security strategy in highly regulated financial environments.
Vladimír Kyliánek — Head of Information and Cyber Security and Chief Information Security Officer, ČSOB Finančná skupina
Vladimír Kyliánek leads cybersecurity strategy and operations at ČSOB Finančná skupina, part of the KBC Group, where he oversees governance, security architecture, incident management, and regulatory alignment. His career reflects a progression from infrastructure and engineering roles into enterprise security leadership, where he has designed security teams, implemented governance frameworks, and strengthened organizational cyber resilience. His leadership emphasizes practical, operational security integrated directly into business processes, ensuring security capabilities align with both regulatory requirements and real-world operational needs within large financial institutions.
Securing the Czech Republic’s Financial Infrastructure
Cybersecurity leadership within the Czech Republic’s banking sector plays a critical role in protecting both national financial stability and customer trust. These leaders bring deep experience across incident response, regulatory compliance, penetration testing, identity management, and enterprise security governance. As financial institutions continue to expand digital services and operate across international environments, their work ensures that cybersecurity remains a foundational component of modern banking resilience.
Looking at banking security in isolation misses a big part of the Czech risk landscape. Insurance organizations face similar regulatory pressure, but with different data flows, claims workflows, and third-party exposure. Continue to CISOs to Watch in the Czech Republic’s Insurance Industry to see the leaders shaping resilience on the insurance side.