Latest Research/analysis News: Finextra Research

City IT contractors cash in on crunch

Salaries for IT contractors working in the City have jumped by 11% in the past six months - to the highest level for two years - as banks look to upgrade trading and risk platforms following last year's credit crunch.

14 February 2008

News/Research/analysis

Green movement provides major market opportunity for tech firms - PwC

Growing public concern over the environment is providing "significant" market opportunities for the technology sector, according to a study from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) which finds that business, not altruism, is forcing companies to take green issues more seriously as they look to attract customers.

13 February 2008

News/Research/analysis

Fixed income e-trading volumes rise - Sifma

Despite the credit crisis, electronic trading in global fixed income markets continued to increase in 2007, according to an annual European survey by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (Sifma).

13 February 2008

News/Research/analysis

One in eight EU adults too scared to shop online

One in eight adults within the European Union's 27 countries do not use online shopping services due to fear of identity theft, according to figures from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Communities.

12 February 2008

News/Research/analysis

US ID theft continues to decline

Direct losses from identity fraud declined for the second year in a row in 2007, according to a fourth annual US study by Javelin Strategy & Research which found that fraudsters are now increasingly switching to offline channels - such as the telephone - to steal confidential personal data.

12 February 2008

News/Research/analysis

Credit crisis to spur op risk IT spending - Datamonitor

The sub-prime crisis will spur banks to increase spending on operational risk technology from $754 million in 2007 to over $1 billion in 2010 - an average annual increase of almost 12% - according to the latest Datamonitor research.

01 February 2008

News/Research/analysis

Phishers targeting company executives

Cyber fraudsters are increasingly conducting targeted phishing attacks against high-level executives in order to glean confidential information that can be used to gain illegal access to company bank accounts.

31 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

UK Web shoppers wise up to online fraud

Media coverage of cybercrime has changed the way Brits shop online, according to research released by e-payment outfit Cybersource which found that customers are now taking more security precautions when purchasing items via the Web.

30 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

A&L sees soaring e-bill payments

Alliance & Leicester Commercial bank says more than 1.9 million online bill payments were made by its business customers via its automated BillPay Web site in 2007, representing a year-on-year increase of more than 70%.

29 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

US bird flu tests highlight need for more planning

US regulators are urging banks to develop contingency plans for dealing with a widespread outbreak of avian flu after a planning exercise conducted last year found that more than one-third of participants had no business continuity strategies in place.

28 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

Sepa goes live

The first stage implementation of the single euro payments area (Sepa) - which aims to make cross-border payments as cheap as domestic transactions - has gone live with the official launch of the Sepa payment instrument for credit transfers.

28 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

Natwest most targeted by phishers

Natwest is the financial institution most targeted by phishing fraudsters, according to a study conducted by UK anti-spam outfit Clearmymail.

23 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

Watchdog to probe insurance comparison sites

The UK's Financial Services Authority (FSA) is set to review the regulation of insurance comparison sites amid concerns that current rules do not adequately protect customers.

22 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

UK online sales rocket

UK Internet sales hit a record high in 2007, with £46.6 billion spent online during the year, a 54% increase on the £30.2 billion recorded in 2006, according to figures released by Capgemini and the Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG).

18 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

US bank spending on compliance soars - Deloitte

The latest research from Deloitte shows that expenditure on compliance by US banks has increased an average of 159% over the past five years, but the majority of spending - 60% - goes on staff costs while only 18% is dedicated to technology.

18 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

Jump in adoption of alternative payment methods

Around 30% of US online retailers now offer customers the option to use alternative payment methods (APM) - such as Google Checkout, PayPal and Bill me Later - which is a 25% increase since February 2007, according to a poll conducted by interactive marketing firm Brulant.

16 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

HSBC tops climate change strategy survey

British banking group HSBC has come out top in a study that examines how global banks are tackling the risks and challenges posed by global warming and climate change.

11 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

Bank spending on technology to rise

Financial services firms in the UK will continue to invest in technology despite the on-going impact of last year's global credit crisis, according to a survey by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

07 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

Banks failing to plan for environmental sustainability - study

A general lack of planning means UK banks are failing to use technology effectively to improve environmental sustainability, according to a study conducted by Datamonitor and commissioned by BT Global Services.

04 January 2008

News/Research/analysis

Financial services IT spending set for modest growth - Celent

The latest research from Celent shows that IT spending by global financial services institutions slowed in 2007 to stand at US$342.1 billion, a year-to-year increase of 5.9% but substantially lower than the 8.7% growth achieved in 2006.

02 January 2008