Latest articles from Fintech
Would you bet your business on Linux?
September 2, 2004A recent roundtable organised by The Banker looked at issues surrounding the non-proprietary Linux operating system. A group of senior bankers took part in a group session discussing Linux adoption and prospects, chaired by The Banker’s technology columnist Chris Skinner.
Credit goes to the innovators
September 2, 2004Banks are facing growing competition from other financial services firms in the credit derivatives market. Rekha Menon finds they are relying on technological innovation to give them the upper hand.
Automated alerting costs less
September 2, 2004Automating a manual outreach process can substantially reduce the average cost of service. TowerGroup estimates that an inbound call connected with a bank’s call centre costs an average of $2.77 to handle. By contrast, automated proactive alerts can cost as little as $0.10 to $0.15 for an informational alert and up to $0.40 for a more complex, two-way alert – an average of about $0.25 is standard globally.
Beware casting off all skills
September 2, 2004IT outsourcing, business process outsourcing and offshore outsourcing make good economic sense. But there is a danger: if so many of an organisation’s skills are external, how will they grow the next generation of internal expertise? By Chris Skinner
A networked future
September 2, 2004Chris New, head of finance industry solutions at BT, talks to The Banker about the growth of the digital networked economy and the implications for the finance sector.
FSIs to up external IT spend
August 2, 2004External IT spending consumes 57% of total IT expenditure in the global financial services industry. TowerGroup expects IT budgets to shift further towards external IT spending, as internally developed legacy systems are replaced with third-party solutions. As outsourcing consumes a growing percentage of IT budgets, TowerGroup estimates that external IT spending will increase from 57% in 2004 to 59% by 2006 – seeing total IT spending grow globally from $198bn to $224bn.
Something to talk about
August 2, 2004The explosion of customer communication channels was intended to cut costs and increase efficiency. However, with cracks appearing in some systems and technology improving to allow face-to-face contact, banks may have to reverse their position on self-service. By Chris Skinner.