Taming the flow monster in real-time payments

At Standard Chartered, these systems are supported by as many as 12,000 coders and technologists, and they now account for about 15 percent of the workforce. The numbers also underline the extent to which banking has become a digital business.

As we move forward, speed and agility are two critical factors driving success. In the past, software upgrades took place once in a few months, but with the rapid changes in today’s environment, the development of software, upgrades and deployment need to happen at a much faster pace. DevOps (Development Operations) is one way to deploy software into the production environment quicker. With this approach, testing and deployment processes are fully automated. New code is dropped into production while the system with the previous codes will still function, allowing the end-user to continue using the services.

A rapidly changing environment has also caused banks turned to partnerships to help them adapt quickly. In recent years, the concept of Open APIs has become increasingly prominent in our industry. In the next 3-5 years, we project a massive integration of service providers’ platforms with banks leading the charge. Open API-led transformations will enable banks to accelerate collaborations with outside organisations and third-party developers. Increased co-created systems will allow a bank to redraw the boundaries of the products and services it offers.

Banks need to change the way they operate

With ever-changing consumer needs, Agile ways of working can help banks embrace changing requirements. Agile software development, an approach based on iterative development that brings together small, cross-functional teams to develop solutions within weeks rather than months, allows a product to go live sooner. At the same time, a project that is not on track could “fail fast,” allowing the team to recalibrate and take a different course quickly.

The prevalence of technology in every aspect of our lives also means that IT cannot be a department that sits on its own in a corporation. As banking becomes a seamless digital process, IT professionals are now integrated with every banking department. At Standard Chartered, besides having IT professionals across our 60 markets, four Centres of Excellence – two in India, one in Malaysia and one in China – support and provide expertise for our global operations. IT teams are now closely integrated with respective product/client solution teams for agile delivery.

Talent and resources are critical for any strategy. Besides having the best talent, there is also a need to be faster and more scalable. There is a progressive shift to cloud-based infrastructures which can connect with multiple platforms such as those of industry-specific clearinghouses, e-commerce platforms, large commercial and government institutions.

Without a doubt, real-time payments are redefining the banking landscape. In the next few years, there will be a multi-fold increase in volumes, with clients expecting 24x7 availability and scalability to handle peaks and troughs. We foresee intense competition for talent and resources, not just in the banking industry, but also with tech firms and telcos. A survival of the fastest, the organisations which can react to the change the fastest will be the true winners.