IBM's 'On Demand' computing model can bring new change to Lebanese banking sector

Regional experts will highlight the underlying role technology plays in the development of the banking sector and the building of the Lebanese economy.

The objective of IBM's on-demand computing environment is to form an open standards-based, integrated, automated and virtualized environment that will allow banks to use solutions that tie together their entire business process, including both internal and external business partners, suppliers and customers. This will allow them to respond to any customer demand and market opportunity with flexibility and speed-a notably key element for success. "We believe that this is an important event for the country's banking sector as it creates new opportunities that build on their existing capabilities and their competitiveness in both the local and global business market." said Gabriel Deek, Secretary General of PCA.

IBM recently announced new middleware solutions for the region's banking sector that allow them to deliver superior customer service at lower costs, including solutions for wholesale payments processing, branch transformation, core systems transformation, channel empowerment and risk & compliance. IBM's Wholesale Payments Processing Solution, for example, can enable banks to centralize and manage repeatable payments processes and consolidate access to external financial networks, allowing them to eliminate costly, duplicative efforts. On the other hand, the Branch Transformation Solution provides a flexible, scalable, and secure branch infrastructure that allows banks to migrate from outdated and difficult-to-manage branch IT systems. It also enhances access to information and collaboration to help banks improve customer-facing employee productivity and reinvent the branch as a full-service financial centre capable of selling more to valued customers.

"The banks that will succeed are the ones that move towards integrating their operations across all channels. While some banks are still struggling to overcome the complexity and inflexibility of their operations, others are transforming their operations by using open-standards middleware technology to obtain a single, consolidated view of customer account information, leading to an improved customer experience, lowered operations costs and enhanced central strategic control," explains Bashar Kilani, Manager of IBM's Software Business, Middle East, Egypt and Pakistan. "This event will focus on IBM's open software architecture and how it brings exciting new opportunities to Lebanese banking organizations with its advanced customization and integration capabilities that will help them operate more efficiently and enhance the service they provide to their customers."

At the event, IBM will bring all five of its enterprise software brands together to provide an in-depth overview on data management, collaboration and messaging, Web services, middleware, systems management and development tools. Through the use of open standards and Web services, these solutions have the ability to integrate into any component of an organization's existing technology infrastructure, allowing them to use the best combination of software and hardware platforms for their business purposes.

The event is in line with IBM's global announcement late last year that it will reorganize its $13.1 billion software business to focus on cross-brand application packages tailored for vertical industries. "In the last few years, we have seen a growing trend in the market for solutions that cater to specific industries and we are now addressing that. Our solutions ensure that our customers in the banking sector can use software solutions that are not only cost-effective and flexible but are customized to their particular business needs," add Kilani.