Transact necessary changes to meet evolving customer, employee and industry demands while addressing complex regulatory mandates and heightened security threats.
The transformational impact technology has had on the delivery of financial services cannot be understated. Just a few years ago, Financial Technology – fintech – was a term reserved for upstart (albeit burgeoning) digital-first/digital-only financial services firms. Today, even the most risk-averse, conservative banks are racing to incorporate fintech across the enterprise in order to attract and retain modern consumers.
Three primary themes have emerged for how fintech is disrupting financial services firms — customer experience, security, and cloud. Each theme poses significant implications for information technology used by all companies in this sector, including banks, credit unions, investment firms, and more.
Behind these initiatives are the systems and infrastructure powered by Structured and its trusted manufacturer partners. With strengths in every discipline across the entire portfolio of financial IT, working with Structured is the key to building secure, agile and manageable networks from the data center to the cloud that will yield high dividends for years to come.
Discussing Digital Disruption in Banking and Finance
Structured builds infrastructure and offers professional services that allow banks, credit unions and other financial organizations to foster innovation, create operational agility, manage data and secure resources.
Customer Experience
More than ever before, banking and finance institutions are prioritizing customer experience. They’re taking advantage of big data and powerful analytics to customize communication and service offerings down to the individual – a tactic often called “segment of one” marketing.
They’ve invested heavily in mobile platforms – enabling customers anywhere, any time to conduct all inquiries and transactions via smartphones or wearables. This ease of use also extends to the sharing economy as banks and credit unions must open their networks to popular apps like PayPal and Zelle. The trend is only expected to intensify as Generation Z comes of age.
Security
For obvious reasons, the Banking and Finance vertical is a major target for threat actors. A natural result from consequential technological change to enhance customer experience will be an increased need for security.
As financial institutions open their networks to third-party vendors, as they continue to accommodate mobile banking and IoT, and as they shift more core banking functions to the cloud, they will need to incorporate sophisticated security tools that automate threat response and provide greater visibility to IT and security operations personnel.
Regulatory adherence requirements will not abate. The federal government is unlikely to loosen security regulations in the face of increased threats.
Cloud
Compute- and/or storage-intensive software platforms for the financial services industry – such as those for AI and data analytics, predictive banking, mobile banking, open banking, and blockchain – will continue to push more organizations to the cloud. Managing big data and reducing time to market for new services will be paramount if banks and credit unions want to survive.
Further, more financial institutions are for the first time considering public cloud deployments to maximize their ability to scale and to reap the full financial benefit that comes with minimizing fragmentation and data silos.
Compliance
Structured has a full complement of compliance services for the financial industry, including vulnerability assessments, penetration testing, control validation, and regulatory gap analysis/compliance audits.
Consider working with us to meet regulatory requirements for:
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX)
Establishes requirements for the secure storage and management of corporate-facing, electronic financial records.
Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA)
Regulates the collection, safekeeping and use of private financial information.
National Credit Union Administration (NCUA)
The NCUA expects credit unions to have the appropriate procedures in place to anticipate, identify, and mitigate cybersecurity risks.
Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS)
Sets requirements for any organizations “that store, process or transmit cardholder data.”
Bridge the Gap
Experience, People, Processes and Technologies since 1992
Discover what’s possible. The digital age is creating enormous opportunities for organizations to innovate, automate, and grow — and technology is the springboard. Embrace the digital age and transform your business with Structured.