Black Kite expands EMEA footprint with new UK operations hub

Black Kite has expanded its EMEA operations by establishing a hub in the United Kingdom, extending the third-party cyber risk management provider's presence across the region.

It is now serving and supporting existing and prospective customers across EMEA in response to demand from organisations seeking better oversight of supply chain cyber risk and vendor security posture.

Black Kite focuses on third-party cyber risk management, a market that has gained prominence as companies face growing scrutiny over weaknesses in supplier networks and broader digital ecosystems. Its platform is used to assess vendors, monitor cyber exposure and help customers respond to risks across their supply chains.

Regional push

Its system provides real-time visibility into extended supplier networks and identifies indicators linked to ransomware exposure, regulatory issues and financial risk. It also offers cyber assessments and continuous monitoring for organisations seeking to track risks beyond their own perimeter.

The UK base is part of a wider effort to build a stronger local footprint in EMEA, including local teams, support and new partnerships intended to widen its reach in the region.

Those partnerships include agreements with Elasticito, Sayari and RAS Infotech as part of a partner-led growth strategy in EMEA.

Paul Paget, Chief Executive Officer, Black Kite, linked the expansion to rising interest in tools that help organisations manage supply chain risk.

"We are expanding our EMEA presence in response to global growing demand for solutions that enable better management of supply chain risk and understanding vendor cyber posture," said Paul Paget, Chief Executive Officer, Black Kite.

"We are dedicated to empowering the region's organizations with on-the-ground expertise, ensuring they remain resilient against cyber threats through our automated third-party risk intelligence and real-time insights. Building a robust local presence and partner network is central to how we deliver value to our customers as we drive our next chapter of growth," added Paget.

Customer demand

Black Kite says it is trusted by more than 3,000 customers and that its data covers more than 40 million companies. That scale reflects the breadth of the market for external cyber risk intelligence, particularly among large enterprises, investors and organisations with extensive supplier bases.

Customer references in Europe highlighted how the platform is used to track external exposure across business portfolios and supply chains. Those use cases point to demand not only from security teams but also from firms involved in investment, acquisitions and broader operational risk management.

Philipp Schaefer, Cyber Risk Manager, Erste Group, described the value of externally sourced intelligence for decision-making.

"Black Kite gives us dependable, decision-grade insights into virtually any organization we care about in CEE and beyond, using transparent industry standards to uncover blind spots across the external attack surface - and by quantifying cyber risk with Open FAIR, it turns technical findings into reliable, business-ready decisions," said Philipp Schaefer, Cyber Risk Manager, Erste Group.

A second customer, ECI Partners, said the service had become part of its day-to-day security work and wider portfolio oversight.

"Black Kite has been part of our security program for years. The outside-in view it gives us of our own attack surface is something I rely on daily, and being able to apply that same lens across every company in our investment portfolio and new acquisitions gives us a level of visibility we simply didn't have before," said Patel.

Partner strategy

The expansion also drew support from one of the company's regional partners, which pointed to customer demand for tools that map risk across third-party vendors.

"Elasticito's customers are thrilled to be working with Black Kite in order to gain visibility and protect their entire third-party vendor ecosystem," said Ronan Lavelle, Co-Founder and Director, Elasticito.

"By expanding the company's technology and presence in EMEA, Black Kite is in the right place at the right time to take advantage of an evergreen and prime market," added Lavelle.

The EMEA move comes as businesses face growing pressure to measure cyber exposure not only within their own systems but across suppliers and subcontractors. That has pushed third-party cyber risk management from a niche security function into a broader boardroom issue, especially in sectors with complex procurement chains and regulatory obligations.

Black Kite's underlying approach is based on the view that the most important cyber ecosystem risks are continuous, connected and extend to Nth-party relationships. Its regional expansion suggests the company sees EMEA as a market where that argument is finding a wider audience among enterprises seeking closer oversight of supplier risk.