The demands of competition and regulation mean banks need to be poised for action. Their core systems must be able to evolve with industry changes, says CSC’s Anita Bradshaw.

Until now, reducing costs and improving flexibility have driven the development and change of core banking systems. However, the burden of new regulations is also putting pressure on banks to unify their customer and product data.

Core banking system replacement is risky and complex but is an increasingly likely scenario for banks. Like their smaller peers, larger institutions may need to opt for packaged solutions to keep costs and time-to-market down.

The desire to source technology solutions from one vendor rather than several is on the rise among banks and this is helping to feed an M&A trend, believes Jim Wilson, president of the international division at Fidelity Information Services. Interview by Michael Imeson.
It is not so much an acquisition trail as a voyage of conquest. Fidelity National Financial (FNF), number 326 in the Fortune 500, has picked up five US banking technology companies in the past 12 months and is on the look out for more.

A potential trade spat between the US and Indian governments could threaten the bright future of offshore outsourcing, says Kala Rao.

Banks’ transition to SWIFTNet may lead to SWIFT’s role being called into question as it could become just another software vendor competing with others. It will have to change its culture quickly if it wants to survive, says Chris Skinner.

TowerGroup estimates that total IT spending on compliance reporting in the global financial services industry will reach nearly $1bn in 2004 and should rise to $1.7bn in 2006.

Linux is especially suited to processing intensive risk management, according to Algorithmics, the enterprise risk management solutions provider. Algorithmics now offers a distributed computing version of its flagship Algo Suite product, which uses its Mark-to-Future framework to leverage the computing power provided by a heterogeneous grid of machines running both the Linux and Solaris operating systems.

As pressure for regulatory compliance continues, Barclays Capital, the investment banking division of Barclays Bank, has selected the raft radar solution, from Raft International, a credit risk and operational risk management provider, to assist in managing operational risk and complying with Basel II and Sarbanes-Oxley regulatory requirements.