The European commissioner for the internal market has been at the forefront of the Sepa initiative since taking up office in 2004. Here, he answers the market’s criticisms of the project and discusses how it has been handled at European level.

Ignace Combes, deputy CEO of Euroclear, is tasked with steering the group through its mission to cut the costs of settling cross-border securities transactions in Europe. He talks to Michelle Price.

The banking industry has suffered a number of huge data breaches. Michelle Price finds out where the weak points are.

The founder of Egg and First Direct has built two businesses around the philosophy of improving the retail banking customer experience. He tells Michelle Price how he intends to continue to change the face of the web.

Indices fuel the global investment industry, providing a critical measure of market activity and investment performance. But do we really understand how they are created, or indeed whether they should be trusted? By Michelle Price.

How should technology be implemented to lower costs, improve efficiency, outwit the competition and reduce the organisation’s carbon footprint? What makes a successful partnership between a technology vendor and a bank? What future developments are in store? These were the key questions discussed at The Banker round table on ‘Retail banking and technology: a new era’, held in London last month. The event, the second on retail banking this year in the Leadership Series, was sponsored by Finacle from Infosys, but independently written and edited.

Peter Josse, global head of IT service delivery and infrastructure at ABN AMRO, talks exclusively to Michelle Price regarding the process of dismantling ABN AMRO and its many challenges.

The impetus to better understand customers and their personal needs will force banks to rethink their approach to channel management, says Michelle Price.

Huge advancements are being made in contactless payment methods in Asia-Pacific and Europe, with a variety of technologies on trial. But some stumbling blocks remain, reports Wendy Atkins.

The risks attached to the UK’s personal debt crisis can be mitigated by the use of technology that identifies at-risk customers at an early stage, says Kieran Kilmartin, product director at Portrait Software.