IT integration spending in the EMEA financial sector is set to leap to $2.1 billion a year by 2004 as wholesale banks embrace Internet technology, according to a Datamonitor report commissioned by Sterling Commerce.
The Datamonitor study ‘Financial Services in a Connected World’ forecasts that enterprise integration in the financial sector will leap from $785 million in 2003 to $2.1 billion the following year in Europe, Middle East and Africa.
The research concludes that the corporate banking field - initially slow to adopt Internet technologies - is now tackling the challenge of bringing together the various communication paths, back office applications and business processes in their financial services.
Simon Bond, director of sales, Northern Europe, at Sterling Commerce, says: “The Internet has to be the focal point for the future success of the corporate financial sector as it plays a key role in the distribution of information and allows for customer consultation regardless of location."
The report predicts financial institutes will change their previous procedures, switching from in-house developments to packaged solutions to achieve faster return on investment, better customer service and a broader product spectrum.
Sterling Commerce is a provider of integration solutions for the financial sector.