Julius Baer has selected software provider Temenos to replace its ageing core banking system in Switzerland, according to four people familiar with the matter, as the bank moves to modernise critical infrastructure amid rising regulatory demands.
Reuters reports that CEO Stefan Bollinger announced in June the creation of a new digital business transformation function and the launch of a project to update the bank’s Swiss IT systems, without disclosing the supplier’s identity.
“It has to be done, and I want to do a substantial proportion in the current strategic cycle,”
Bollinger said, referring to the period ending in 2028, citing increasing regulatory requirements as a key driver.
The bank is aligning its Swiss systems with Temenos’ T24 platform, which Julius Baer already uses in Singapore and Luxembourg, two of the sources said.
The lender is also adding a Temenos wealth management interface for relationship managers and high-net-worth clients, according to one source.
Temenos generally signs new deals under a subscription model, with cash flows spread over five years, according to Reto Huber, an analyst at consultancy Research Partners.
Switzerland introduced a requirement in 2016 for banks to use computer-based systems to monitor transactions, increasing the need for digital customer data, according to financial regulator FINMA.
Julius Baer, which remains under a FINMA enforcement procedure related to losses tied to the failed Signa property group, said the IT overhaul is unrelated to the ongoing assessment.
“The IT infrastructure programme in Switzerland is not an operational risk issue, rather an initiative to gain strategic flexibility in pursuit of the bank’s future ambitions,”
it said.
Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Switzerland, based on image by brilian via Freepik
