EBRC Mag Digital&Trust: 2020-2021 edition

DIGITAL &TRUST

2020-2021 Edition

TIME FOR RESILIENCE!

URGENT & IMPORTANT JOINT INTERVIEW The pioneers of digital Europe p.04 INNOVATION Kubernetes... managed, on demand p.12 SURVEY On the use of the Cloud in Luxembourg p.14 STRATEGY Strategy based on secure Data Centers and information availability p.17

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2020-2021 EDITION

CONTENTS 04 /

J OINT INTERVIEW

20 /

— The pioneers of digital Europe P.04 / 06 /

PARTNERS PROGRAMME

— EBRC and the University of Strasbourg: a winning partnership P.20 / — Limonetik, a reference in the world of digital payments P.22 /

TRENDS

— Resilience: how to bounce back from crisis P.06 /

— Open banking with LuxHub: from PSD2 to the financial services marketplace P.24 /

— COVID-19: business facing the resilience test P.09 / 10 / C YBERRESILIENCE — Cyber-Resilience in your organisation P.10 / 12 / I NNOVATION — Kubernetes... managed, on demand P.12 /

— Bankable relies on EBRC for its international development P.26 / — The advantages of DevOps within a trusted cloud P.28 / — i-Hub strengthens its service continuity with EBRC and becomes ISO 22301 certified P.30 /

14 / S URVEY — On the use of the Cloud in Luxembourg P.14 / 17 / S TRATEGY — EBRC’s strategy revolves around secure Data Centers and available information P.17 /

Publisher: EBRC, 5 Rue Eugène Ruppert, 2453 Luxembourg / Phone: +352 26 06 1 / marketing.support@ebrc.com / Printed in November 2020 with 1,500 printed copies issued — Graphic realisation: Nicolas Bœuf / Farvest Group — Cover: Mikado — Editorial management: Jean-François Hugon, EBRC

03

EDITORIAL 2000 - 2020: TWENTY YEARS ALREADY! EBRC (European Business Reliance Centre) is celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year. eBRC was started from scratch in 2000, and operated in start-up mode at the peak of the dotcom euphoria. This was when we were being told that the new e-economy was about to wipe away the old economic assumptions. Following this hubris came disappointment.

In many ways, the dotcom crash and the 9/11 attacks were to 2001 what the COVID-19 crisis is to 2020: a violent socio-economic shock followed by major uncertainties. eBRC started work at the height of the storm.

At the time, we stuck to our motto “Together, trusting, in the information age.”

This motto has not changed for twenty years. The start-up eBRC became EBRC: a centre with 340 experts providing trusted services to some 900 clients from Europe (Luxembourg and France) and Morocco via our subsidiary Digora.

The same passion has driven us for 20 years: working with our clients on this digital revolution, in an atmosphere of mutual confidence. We do this via our “Trusted Services”, an integrated, certified end-to-end value proposition using the highest standards. It features a range of services including Data Centers, Resilience, Cloud, Managed Services, Advisory and more.

Our clients all have one thing in common: they manage sensitive information which must be kept safe.

Our clients need a long-standing partner who can offer both agility and the ability to manage IT systems. This enables them to focus increased efforts on their core business, while all the time being protected from new cyber-risks.

Over these twenty years, EBRC has grown thanks to you, our clients and users, to whom I would like to express our deepest gratitude for the trust you put in us over this period.

Whether you work in finance, are a FinTech, a health service provider, a pharma company, a bio-bank, an e-commerce company, a critical industry, an international institution or work in the space sector, for the defence industry, in the public sector, in a law firm or a start-up, we are there for you 365/24/7, whatever the business climate. Every crisis has unique features with new opportunities, and this is what we mean by resilience: the ability to anticipate, manage, withstand, and rebound to return stronger. The COVID-19 crisis will accelerate the on-going trend of digitalisation. This will add to business agility and open new opportunities, but will also generate substantial new digital risks.

This crisis is a wake-up call.

It will lead to a major paradigm change. Europe has, at last, taken substantial steps toward a strong digital future, based on the concept of real digital sovereignty and creating a widespread Cyber-Resilience zone, including the “GAIA-X” project.

More than ever, we must come together in our continent to build a digital Europe based on Trust and Cyber-Resilience. This will set the tone for our information age.

I hope you find this magazine interesting and useful.

Yves Reding, CEO - EBRC

2020-2021 EDITION

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J OINT

INTE RV IE W

Jean-Noël de Galzain President - Hexatrust

Photo credit: Erez Lichtfeld

Interview by Stéphane Etienne, Hypallages

THE PIONEERS

OF DIGITAL EUROPE In June 2019, EBRC joined the Hexatrust association which brings together companies from France and Europe with excellent expertise in cybersecurity and Cyber-Resilience, and supports the project to create an efficient and secure European trusted cloud.

But what is its strategy and how do its proposals match those of EBRC? A discussion between Jean-Noël de Galzain, CEO of Hexatrust, and Yves Reding, CEO of EBRC.

H

— UNIQUE KNOW-HOW IN EUROPE “All these technological mar vels promote the same values: innovation, unity, action, excellence,” commented Jean-Noël de Galzain. “Our goal is to bring together the best cybersecurity and cloud computing solutions. The political and economic world must be

exatrust is a grouping of

their profits in innovation. The solutions

aware that Europe has unique know-

about sixty small, medium

offered include encryption, connected

how, that it is ready for development

and large companies

objects, governance, traceability and

if given the means to do so. From the

offering innovative solutions

auditing issues, identity and access

very beginning of the coronavirus

for every aspect of risk management

management, industrial systems

pandemic, our members immediately

and personal data protection. Active

security, messaging security, mobile and

made every effort to enable companies

throughout the world, the members

web traffic security, transaction security,

to organise themselves in line with

bring together more than 2,500 experts,

trusted cloud services (including EBRC

the lockdown measures, in order to

have a total turnover of more than 400

Trusted Cloud Europe) and Cyber-

continue operating under the best

million Euros, are experiencing 19%

Resilience (EBRC Cyber-Resilience

possible conditions. In this way, we

growth and reinvest nearly 30% of

Portal).

want to demonstrate that our digital

05

Yves Reding CEO - EBRC

industry is essential to supporting all European economic activity, particularly in the event of a crisis. Our group, with its European partners such as Teletrust in Germany and other associations in Europe, is ready to participate in post-Coronavirus reconstruction and to contribute to the creation of genuine digital infrastructures capable of preparing the European Union for the massive use of digital technology.”

In line with this desire to work towards cooperation, and to create synergies to better defend the sector’s interests, Hexatrust has set up a one-stopshop with added value: Hexatrust Distribution. “Its role is to pool the catalogue of services of our various members in order to provide it to public and private organizations wishing to equip themselves with sovereign

Photo credit: EBRC

and trusted solutions in the field of cybersecurity and cloud computing”, Jean-Noël de Galzain continued. “This

to EBRC, as its CEO, Yves Reding,

EBRC and WALLIX, we realised that

organisation enables us to meet three

explained. “We have been promoting

we had common values and a common

requirements: centralising, optimising

European values for a long time. The “E”

strategy, and it was quite natural for

and purchasing. A single point of contact

in “EBRC” stands for “European”! Our

EBRC to join Hexatrust. Together, we

enables customers to take advantage of

strategy has always been to promote

are reflecting on what can be done to

a privileged communication channel, and

a digital Europe, Cyber-Resilience

ensure market confidence in European

also offers each publisher personalised

and trust in the cloud. We also have

digital services.”

and centralised support with regard

a strong presence in France through

“Our role within the group is also to

to all commercial and technical

our subsidiary Digora, which has some

liaise with other similar associations in

information. They are supported by

140 employees, including around 20

other European countries. At EBRC,

a team of experts offering an optimal

in Morocco, and has a presence in

we believe that it is by building bridges

combination of solutions to meet a

all major French cities. We also have

between the different associations,

wide variety of needs. They ease their

our own clients and strategic partners

both local and European, that a digital

purchasing procedures via a single

under the aegis of EBRC, in particular

Europe can be built. The European

point of contact.”

IT security software publisher WALLIX,

Union may, in some ways, seem like a

of which Jean-Noël is the CEO. We

Tower of Babel, but we have a long,

also have a strategic partnership

shared history and a common view of

BETWEEN THE VARIOUS

with EGERIE, a software publisher

the world; it is our different cultures,

ASSOCIATIONS

specialised in the analysis and integrated

languages and countries that make it so

Hexatrust’s policy of openness and

management of cyber-risks, and also

open to the world and so enriching. In

its willingness to work with others to

a member of Hexatrust. Beyond the

Europe, real discussions are possible

build a strong and credible European

relationship of trust that has gradually

and such discussions can only help

digital industry immediately appealed

been established over the years between

us grow”.

— BUILDING BRIDGES

2020-2021 EDITION

06

TRE NDS

Yves Reding CEO - EBRC

Interview by Alexandre Keilmann, Farvest

RESILIENCE:

HOW TO BOUNCE BACK FROM CRISIS Yves Reding, CEO of EBRC, discusses the crucial importance for companies of developing a deep culture of resilience, and the need to protect against threats that can – and cannot – be anticipated.

Following the COVID-19 crisis, the concepts of risk management and (Cyber-) Resilience have become more important than ever. As an expert, Yves tells us more about his vision and philosophy, and also shares his thoughts on the launch of the Gaia-X initiative.

—

R ESILIENCE:

HOW

TO

BO UNCE

BACK

FRO M

CRISIS

—

07

and some players might even disappear

impacted the targeted companies.

EMERGENCE OF RESILIENCE:

because of their lack of awareness”.

Therefore, the next step to achieve

A WAKE-UP CALL

In such a context, companies are now

an overall resilient business model is

“We are currently learning lessons from

transforming their business model into

to invest in Cyber-Resilience”.

the COVID-19 crisis. The world we knew

a resilient one, which can adapt and

A couple of years ago, the European

before and the one we are now navigating

bounce back, getting rid of short-term

Commission enforced the NIS Directive,

in are not the same. This pandemic

and purely financial objectives. Rather

which provides legal measures to boost

changed the way things are perceived,

they are investing more into Corporate

the overall level of cybersecurity in the

and even challenged the priorities of

Social Responsibility, sustainability,

EU and identifies “Operators of Essential

entire ecosystems, governments,

people, etc. The CEO highlights: “a

Services”. The name says it all: such

companies, etc. on political, social and

resilient business model will allow

services are essential for governments,

economic levels,” starts Yves Reding.

companies to analyse future trends

health institutions, financial flows,

The digital expert notably shares the

– demographic changes and health

energy, transport, water supply and

example of business models that now

issues, global warming, digitalisation,

distribution, digital infrastructure, etc., to

need to fully integrate the concept of

etc. – and therefore anticipate, predict,

keep on running. “Digital then becomes

resilience, advocated by EBRC for the

protect, absorb, manage, recover and

systemic! And the COVID-19 crisis made

last 20 years. “The Coronavirus crisis

even accelerate”.

it clear in the minds of organisations

is not a black swan: it could/should

And when it comes to digital, Yves

and individuals: our activities were only

have been predicted. Over the last two

Reding notices that more progress

able to continue thanks to digital. But

decades, companies have had to face

was made in the last three months

tomorrow, digital could be harmed

several health crisis: back in 2003 with

compared to the last three years, with

and threatened by cyber attackers. As

the SARS outbreak and later in 2009

the emergence of the digital pendant of

digital becomes the backbone of our

when the World Health Organization

resilience: Cyber-Resilience.

society, it must become resilient, and,

— COVID-19 AND THE

declared the H1N1 pandemic. Moreover,

by definition, cyber-resilient,” underlines Yves Reding.

pandemics and health crisis have

— BEYOND TRADITIONAL

become part of the popular culture

RESILIENCE: THE WAY

with many books and movies dealing

TOWARDS CYBER-RESILIENCE

with such issues. The risk was here and

In this respect, digital has proved – if

we should all have been aware of it,”

it were even needed – its tremendous

declares the CEO of EBRC.

use and undeniable advantages.

Resilient – and cyber-resilient – strategies

Within EBRC, the concept of resilience

For instance, the entire country of

rely on dedicated and specific resources.

is well-known and part of the global

Luxembourg, thanks to its flexibility

“Several programmes already exist, but

strategy of the company. As explained

and its robust IT infrastructure, was able

we are still noticing a major gap between

by Yves Reding, the term resilience

to turn rapidly to homeworking, without

what is available for companies, and how

is mostly used in psychology – when

having to slow down its activity. “The

they actually use these tools,” underlines

an individual goes through a traumatic

notions of risk management, resilience

Yves Reding, who notably names

event and later recovers – and in the

and of course, Cyber-Resilience have

multiple ISO certifications – 22301,

metal industry when for instance rails

become the new standards,” says

which concerns business continuity

and bridges need to absorb important

the CEO, whose teams embraced

and 27001, which deals with information

thermal shocks. He adds: “it is also

homeworking from the very first day

security management. EBRC has also

commonly used when describing a

of the lockdown period. He asks: “but

been participating in exercises created

forest that needs to regenerate. That

what would happen if the network or

by the European Union Agency for

is what Humans and Nature do: the

IT systems were to crash? What about

Cybersecurity (ENISA) for years, on

concept should already be integrated by

the increasing number of cyberattacks

how potential cyber attackers could

all individuals and companies. Yet, many

during the last three months? When

impact Cloud Service Providers (CSP)

were not aware of it prior to COVID-19,

perpetrated the right way, they clearly

and Internet Service Providers (ISP),

— ASSISTING COMPANIES IN THEIR FIGHT AGAINST CYBER THREATS

2020-2021 EDITION

08

which might very well happen in the near future.

In addition to such standards and regular exercises, EBRC teams worked on an assessment tool with a mission to facilitate the life of decision-makers.

“We developed a solution based on the analysis of the client’s processes and the production of a report highlighting the gap between their processes and

Microscopic examination of Coronavirus COVID-19. 3D illustration.

the industry’s best practices in terms of resilience and Cyber-Resilience. It takes about 45 minutes to provide them with their level of maturity and then

change,” highlights the CEO who has

industries to analyse risks and anticipate,

guide them towards the best levels of

been in contact with the German and

by actually using sensitive personal data

protection,” explains the CEO of the

French ecosystems for many years. He

that would have been anonymised, under

20-year-old digital company.

continues: “just like with GDPR and NIS,

the governance of Europe.

Moreover, in February 2020, just

Europe needs to regain possession of

As a conclusion, Yves Reding highlights

before the lockdown, EBRC surveyed

its digital ecosystem, by transmitting

the tremendous digital silent acceleration

decision-makers and IT professionals

and using its main values: transparency,

that took place in the last three months,

in Luxembourg and in France on the

openness, interoperability, trust and

while also acknowledging the change

topic of Cloud Services and “digital

sovereignty. Europe will then be in

of mindset when it comes to risk and

sovereignty”: 55% of respondents

the driver’s seat and able to impose

resilience. Companies now know that

labeled it as “a necessity for Europe”,

transparent rules, known by all the

they need to be able to deal with all types

when only less than 10% of companies

players”. Over the years, numerous

of crisis, especially with cyber threats,

and individuals see it as not necessary or

theoretical projects have been led, but

in a world that is more digital than ever.

impossible to achieve. And lately, a key

according to the CEO, Gaia-X is a key

An advocate of an extended approach

project was just launched at the EU level

political statement. He adds: “The EU

towards risk through Cyber-Resilience

to boost Europe’s “digital sovereignty”

member states now speak as one, with

and towards data management and

and aiming at EU cloud independence.

the appropriate means and energy.

sovereignty, the CEO of EBRC, along

EBRC falls within this ambitious project

with his team, spent much of 2020

and so do many European associations”.

working on innovative projects to mitigate

FOR EUROPE TO CONTROL

With data often described as the

and anticipate such risks, and he also

AND MASTER DATA

“oil of the 21st century”, one of the

welcomes the launch of Gaia-X.

Yves Reding welcomes the Gaia-X

main objectives of Gaia-X is to keep

“We went through a violent COVID-19

initiative powered by the Ministries of the

control of data and services through

pandemic but we must learn from this

Economy of both Germany and France,

technological independence. “In the

crisis: we will change our world and

backed by talented researchers and key

current environment, mastering data is

will become stronger. We have to build

players of the digital industry: “EBRC

key. For instance, how could a hospital

a more resilient and cyber-resilient

has been advocating European digital

survive without data knowledge and

world for the next generations, able

sovereignty for years. We are excited

control? How can the car industry

to face future crisis”, concludes the

to see that things are now moving

build autonomous vehicles if it does

CEO, “moreover, we have to take back

at the political level. The European

not understand and master data?” then

control over our strategic resources,

Commission, led by Ursula von der

asks Yves Reding. Gaia-X revolves

digital and data. Time has come to take

Leyen, has communicated its ambitions

around building on data with specific

decisive steps, at all levels, to build our

and we are in the middle of a paradigm

use cases, which will allow the different

Trusted Digital Europe”.

— GAIA-X AND THE NEED

09

TRE NDS

Interview by Isabelle Couset, Entreprises Magazine

COVID-19: BUSINESS FACING THE TEST OF RESILIENCE Christophe Ruppert - EBRC

During the health crisis, lacking a BCP (Business Continuity Plan) has put many companies in a - very - uncomfortable situation.

Key principles and benefits of a BCP are explained in an interview with Christophe Ruppert, Business Continuity Management Practice Lead at EBRC.

The ISO 22301 standard was updated

Plan (managing priorities according to

initiative to set up a BCP?

at the end of 2019. In simple terms it

the crisis), Risk Mitigation Plan (mapping

— Who should take the It is above all a matter of anticipating

addresses the ability of an organisation

risks in order to avoid or minimise them),

and preparing the company to preserve

to continue to deliver its goods/services

and Restoration Plan (returning to normal

its operations in the event of a crisis

with a predefined acceptable level

activities at the company’s primary site).

with the aim of protecting its corporate

based on listening to weak signals.

and economic assets. It is therefore a

The BCP therefore includes risk

strategic approach, under the direct

analysis to deal with various scenarii:

would you make to

responsibility of the CEO. The stakes

IT problems, employee absence,

companies further to the

in some cases are high, which makes

building unavailability, disruption of

COVID-19 crisis?

it a critical component of company

critical suppliers, a pandemic, and so

The BCP acts as a shock absorber,

management.

on. The goal of the BCP is to plan so that

enabling the company to take resist

company activities can be maintained

without breaking, with better security

— What are the benefits?

in a downgraded mode before returning

and more peace-of-mind for the CEO,

Our experience enables us to identify a

to normal.

and above all it should foster quicker

dozen or so areas of intervention that will

— What recommendations

exit from the crisis. This being said,

have a direct impact on the company’s

— Can you give us a few tips

we also have the capacity for rapid

performance. More generally, they fall

to initiate this resilience

intervention. Over the last few weeks

approach?

our consultants have supported

into three main categories: establishing an appropriate response in the event of

Overall, the approach is based on

several companies in the definition

a crisis, optimising vital processes, and

six steps defined by the ISO 22301

and adaptation of their plans, and we

ensuring compliance with the company’s

standard, all of which enable us to

are already working on the scenarii for

business regulations. Ultimately, the

define the BCMS (Business Continuity

making it possible to emerge from the

exercise makes it possible to optimise

Management System) adapted to the

crisis. My recommendation will be to

costs by adapting the responses

company. We optimise the approach by

draw on the lessons learned from the

appropriately. Even better, clients can

customising it based on the company’s

crisis and use them to create a “BCP

verify the resilience of their service

level of maturity and its activity. To do

2.0”. Our diagnosis is free.

providers by demanding ISO 22301

so, we designed a quick assessment

certification, making it a competitive

tool. There are 6 levels of good practice

advantage and a qualitative criterion

related to the standard: Emergency

of choice.

Responsibility (ensuring personal safety), Disruption Recovery Plan (retreating to

— How would you define

NEED TO LEARN MORE? Download our whitepaper “Cyber-Resilience towards Cyber-Reliance”

a secondary site), Business Recovery

the ISO 22301 standard,

Plan (ensuring the continuity of critical

the central element of

activities and internal and external

resilience?

communication), Crisis Management

2020-2021 EDITION

10

CYBE R-RE SIL IE NCE

CYBER-RESILIENCE

IN YOUR ORGANISATION Ensuring the continuity of your business

— KEY POINTS OF CYBER-RESILIENCE : 01

04 Designing or transforming existing infrastructures by adopting an approach based on ensuring “Security and privacy by design”: Proxy, Firewall, Anti-Virus, Anti-DDoS, Mail Security, Sandboxing, IPS/IDS, WAF

Knowledge and compliance with the regulatory framework: GDPR, NIS, supervisory authorities (finance, insurance, transport, health, etc.)

05 02 Adopting international standards for risk management and business resilience: ISO 31000, ISO 27001, ISO 27018, ISO 27032, ISO 22301, ISO 22316

Raising awareness, continuously training and informing all employees and stakeholders about Cyber-Resilience

06 03 Adopting and/or requiring service providers to use appropriate security and continuity levels based on certifications such as: Data Centers, PCI DSS, HDS (Health Data Host), ISO 27001, ISO 22301

Deciding on the company’s ability to deploy such resources, or opting for a partner to provide support in the implementation of Cyber-Resilience: audit, consulting, risk management, business continuity, certified Data Center, operational and integrated security management (SOC/CERT), IT infrastructure management, certification programmes, etc.

—

CYB ER - R ESIL IE NCE

L IFE CYCL E

11

—

Continuous improvement

PREPARE KEY PEOPLE CEO, CISO, BCM, CRO, DPO ACTIVITIES •B usiness impact analysis •R isk assessment •C yber-Resilience audit •C ompliance & standards •C yber-Resilience strategy •G overnance & policies • Awareness & exercise

RECOVER ADV CERT MS SOC

ADV

KEY PEOPLE CIO, CISO, BCM, CRO ACTIVITIES • Back to normal operations • Forensics • Continuous improvement • Legal • Communication

IDENTIFY KEY PEOPLE CIO, CISO, BCM

ADV CERT

ACTIVITIES • Gap analysis Business/IT • Vulnerability assessment • Penetration test • Technology watch • Vulnerability watch

01

ADV CERT MS SOC

02

07

RESPOND

PROTECT

KEY PEOPLE CEO, CISO, BCM, CRO, DPO ACTIVITIES • Decisional crisis management • Crisis communication • Containment • Remediation • Business continuity

KEY PEOPLE CIO, CISO, BCM

05

A N A LY S E ADV CERT MS SOC

ACTIVITIES • Risk mitigation • Continuity management • Security management • High availability architecture • Data centre availability • Change management

03

06

04

DETECT

KEY PEOPLE CIO, CISO, BCM

KEY PEOPLE CIO, CISO, BCM

ACTIVITIES • Threat analysis • Prioritisation • Operational crisis management

ACTIVITIES • Log correlation • Real-time alert • Incident management

ADV CERT MS SOC

EBRC expertise: ADV

: ADVISORY / CERT : COMPUTER EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM / MS

: MANAGED SERVICES / SOC

: SECURITY OPERATION CENTER

2020-2021 EDITION

ADV CERT MS

12

INNO VATION

Interview by Alain de Fooz, Solutions Numériques

KUBERNETES...

MANAGED, ON DEMAND Businesses will reap the rewards of KaaS – Kubernetes-as-a-Service – the latest innovation from EBRC. This highly innovative solution gives developers added flexibility, while also being good value and highly secure.

O

rganisations working online now have no

—F OCUS ON BUSINESS NEEDS IN A CHANGING WORLD

— MORE EFFICIENT, COSTEFFECTIVE RESOURCES

option but to adapt

“The only thing that is constant is

Therefore, rather than waiting weeks

and innovate rapidly.

change,” noted the ancient Greek

or even months to get the physical or

Competition to gain and retain

philosopher Heraclitus of Ephesus

cloud infrastructure required for the

customers will continue to grow. To meet

2,500 years ago. This time-honoured

application, developers can benefit from

these business needs, technologies

wisdom underlines the continual need

quick access to these environments on

related to DevOps methodologies

for innovation by online service providers

a self-service basis.

have emerged, notably cloud native

seeking to attract and retain clients. No

The beauty of KaaS is that it is

tools such as Kubernetes. These tools

longer can new applications take 18

“agnostic” about the used cloud

supply the required automation and

months to plan and implement. They

platform. Applications do not need

agility to the development teams so

have to improve continuously in order to

to be modified, regardless of whether

that they can continuously manage,

offer new functionalities, to upgrade the

the KaaS is deployed on-premises or

adapt, test and boost the performance

interface, to fix bugs and patch security

through the cloud. They can quickly

of their applications; and so meet the

flaws. Kubernetes accelerates each

grow without having to be defined again

needs of Sales and Marketing teams,

stage of development and delivery

or having to rebuild the infrastructure

as well as those of the Security teams.

by supplying the configuration tools

for each new project. “Regardless of

Companies are then freed from the

to meet the best practice. Thus

the underlying infrastructure, KaaS

limitations of legacy development

developers can work with shorter, less

offers a management environment

methodologies. There is no longer

restrictive delivery schedules which

focused on the container. It orchestrates

a need to plan months in advance

give the upgrades that clients consider

resources (computing, network, storage)

for relatively rare deployments.

useful. “Businesses which constantly

for user workloads, while maintaining

Upgrades are easy and can be carried

review customer behaviour can thus

the portability between different

out at any stage in order to securely

quickly react and match the offering

infrastructure providers,” Gérard Miceli

support business development. Easy

with the demand,” explained Gérard

added.

deployements at a lower cost: this

Miceli, Innovation Consultant at EBRC.

This also leads to an increase in speed

is the key advantage of Kubernetes-

Freed from various constraints related

which frees resources. Large parts of the

as-a-Service. “We help our clients

to application deployment, testing, and

application portfolio can be upgraded

achieve their development goals more

synchronisation with the production

even more quickly and at a lower cost;

quickly,” explained Yuri Colombi,

teams, efforts can be focused on

thus fostering business innovation by

Head of Solutions & Innovation at

delivering the business functionality

allowing key services to be presented

EBRC.

operational teams need and expect.

in the form of application components.

—

KUB ER NETES...

MANAGE D,

O N

EBRC DEPLOYS, HOSTS AND MAINTAINS EVERY REQUIRED ASSET FOR KAAS TO WORK EFFICIENTLY

DE MAND

13

—

Ku bernetes-as-a- S er vice is a managed DevOps platform. This features hybrid cloud architecture, with on premise capacity and control infrastructure located in Tier IV certified Data Centers in Luxembourg. Data is therefore always stored in Luxembourg, thus setting it apart from public cloud solutions.

“The client can choose a service managed fully on the premises, or in

— “AS-A-SERVICE” IS

workload, unless comprehensive external

a private cloud, or on the public cloud.

support is provided,” Yuri Colombi

All options are open to them,” said

Nevertheless, this flexibility comes with

noted. “Hence the advantage of working

Gérard Miceli. “The operation mode

its own challenges. The open-source

in managed mode, which can be seen as

is the same: no CAPEX, only OPEX.

Kubernetes community continues to

an holistic approach to the management

Once Kubernetes-as-a-Service is

develop and refine available tools and

of containerised work requirements.” This

deployed, developers no longer have

systems. Therefore, many DevOps teams

is where EBRC’s expertise in operational

to worry about the infrastructure and

have to be creative in order to get more

management is valuable, where these

underlying configuration. Applications

rationalised, automated processes which

needs can be met through Kubernetes

have multi-cloud portability on public

are able to meet new deployment needs.

as-a-Service. Actually, EBRC installs,

and private clouds.”

That is why, the teams need Kubernetes

runs and manages the solution, while

“as-a-service”.

ensuring an SLA of some 99.9%

— ACCELERATE YOUR GROWTH

EBRC deploys, hosts and maintains

available 24/7. Consulting services -

“Kubernetes-as-a-Service enables

every required asset for KaaS to work

in particular regarding best practices

DevOps teams to offer clients the

efficiently. Thanks to EBRC, companies

around Kubernetes - are also delivered

autonomy they need to manage

can forget about the support-related

by EBRC. All day-to-day tasks can thus

their CI/CD pipelines without any

constraints usually encountered with

be handled without downtime, be they

restriction. The managed mode, based

this kind of platform. This enables

security updates, bug fixes and more.

on the EBRC platform, enables them to

AN ADDED DIMENSION

developers to focus on innovation

focus on the work that is most important — THE DATA ARE HOUSED IN

to them,” said Yuri Colombi. “Clients

“Large-scaled management of these

EUROPE, IN LUXEMBOURG

concentrate on their business and

systems, as well as ensuring timely

Based on the certified CNCF (Cloud

their innovation, while EBRC ensures

updates of modules linked to Docker

Native Computing Foundation)

that the KaaS platform is available and

and Kubernetes can add a substantial

Kubernetes distribution methods,

up-to-date.”

and added value.

2020-2021 EDITION

14

SURVEY

ON THE USE OF THE CLOUD IN LUXEMBOURG — 1. Cloud adoption in Luxembourg 2020 Penetration rate in corporate IT

Cloud market penetration rate

CURRENT

SHORT-TERM

70% are using the cloud 25% are planning to use the cloud

32%

5% are not using the cloud

45-50%

32% of corporate IT is already operated in the Cloud, and that number should rapidly increase to 50%

95% are using or planning to use the cloud

Ranking of private or public platforms most used by companies (3 possible answers per respondent)

A subject that CEOs consider of strategic importance

CEOs are strongly involved in decision relating to the cloud

51%

70%

36%

26% 26%

Microsoft Azure is ahead of VMware, AWS and Google Cloud in the ranking of most-used platforms

— 2. Motivations for implementing a Cloud project Main objectives

Evaluation of the achievement of the objectives of flexibility, mobility and cost reduction

Flexibility

95%

71% 24%

Flexibility

Mobility strategy

Cost reduction

Mobility strategy

86%

64% 22%

71%

77%

51%

65.71%

68.57%

42.86%

8.57%

5.71%

8.57%

Satisfied Cost reduction

80%

Very important

16% 64%

Exceeds expectations

Important

Companies are setting the objectives of flexibility, mobility and cost reduction in their projects

Companies claim to be very satisfied mainly as regards flexibility and mobility strategy however their opinion is more nuanced as regards cost reduction

15

— 3. Feedback A rather high median satisfaction rate at 67.5%

Performance, the easiest criterion to measure

- mobility strategy 77.2%

Nevertheless

85%

60%

- high availability 77% - flexibility 72% - data security 60% - cost reduction 51% ANSWERS satisfied or exceeded their expectations

85% of companies claim that it is difficult or complex to - make the architecture secure - comply with regulatory requirements

60% of companies claim that it is easy to demonstrate performance gains in a cloud project

— 4. CSP (Cloud Service Provider) selection criteria Certifications

Certified and national Data Center

Around 55% of companies

55% of companies believe that the ISO 27001, ISO 22301 and ISO 27018 standards are decisive in the choice of their CSP; this percentage increases between 70 and 90% if the stakeholders who consider them to be “of average importance” are taken into account

consider that the Data Center’s Tier IV certification and its location in Luxembourg are very important criteria when choosing a public cloud

Other criteria

Risk analysis

66% of companies conduct a risk analysis before carrying out a project

60%

of companies consider it decisive to get assurance with regard to: - no contractual (lock-in) - the CSP’s reputation

— 5. Current trends and developments DevOps

Hybrid cloud

40-45% of companies have adopted agile development methods and containerisation, while 20% are considering adopting them

50% of companies use a hybrid cloud architecture

2020-2021 EDITION

16

— 6. Main obstacles to the deployment of the hybrid cloud

— 7. For or against a sovereign cloud?

Skills shortage

44% believe that there is a skills shortage internally 30% have noted a skills shortage in their IT service provider

Complexity

90% of companies desire a sovereign cloud, because they believe that it is

40% of companies believe that the hybrid cloud remains complex to master

- a necessity for Europe (55%) - a desirable alternative to be offered to companies (25%) - an indispensable change to guarantee data protection (10%)

Summary • Strong take-up of the cloud in companies and organisations in Luxembourg, in particular for MS-Azure which is ahead of VMware, AWS and Google Cloud • Cost reduction (80%), flexibility (95%) and the implementation of a mobility strategy (86%) are the real motivations for migration • Improvements in terms of flexibility, performance, high availability and mobility are demonstrable • However, the satisfaction expressed is more nuanced, particularly as regards costs, security and regulatory compliance • The cloud service providers’ contracts and price offers remain difficult to interpret and compare • Private cloud offerings are more reassuring than public cloud offerings • A (temporary?) skills shortage hinders the development and deployment of professional cloud applications • A European public cloud (sovereign and respectful of privacy) and a prior analysis of risks are prerequisites for more widespread adoption

This survey was conducted by EBRC and Farvest IT One, in Luxembourg between April and May 2020 with the involvement of 65 corporate decision-makers.

17

STRATEGY

Interview by Alexandre Keilmann, Farvest

EBRC’S STRATEGY REVOLVES AROUND SECURE DATA CENTERS AND

AVAILABLE INFORMATION

We recently met Bruno Fery (Head of Data Center Services, EBRC). The seasoned expert tells us more about the evolution of Data Centers and describes the uniqueness of EBRC and the services it provides all over the world. He also shares his thoughts on the future of Data Centers, notably discussing CSR and the sustainability best practices advocated by EBRC.

— A STRATEGIC PARTNER,

Certification), and more, the company

security of their environment and of

LOCATED IN THE HEART

located in Luxembourg has become

course, sustainability. As a matter of

OF EUROPE

the strategic partner for the companies

fact, sustainability is one of EBRC’s main

BRC is an historical player

operating critical transactions or sensitive

“EARTH” values: Excellence, Agility,

in the field of Data Centers

information in the health sector, the world

Responsibility, Trust, Human. Our clients

in Europe and was actually

of finance, and in several other industries.

clearly benefit from our commitment to

one of the first IT companies

Through its ISO certifications, EBRC

protect the environment through efficient

in the world to own and run three Data

ensures quality management (ISO 9001),

energy management and to reduce the

Centers that are Tier IV certified by Uptime

it also manages the immediate and

carbon footprint.” underlines the Head of

Institute. “Our three Tier IV Data Centers,

long-term environmental impacts of

Data Center Services. Such certifications

combined with our multiple international

its products, services and processes

add more value to the services provided

certifications and innovative services,

(ISO 14001), and follows management

by EBRC, with a coherent structure and

are what makes EBRC unique in the

processes to deliver more efficient IT

yearly audits conducted by external

ICT landscape,” explains Bruno Fery.

services (ISO 20000). EBRC also

companies. “Combined with our human

Tier IV certification ensures an availability

specialises in Cyber-Resilience, through

capital, these certifications allow us to

of 99.995%, which represents less than

ISO 22301 (business continuity) and

manage sensitive data and information,

26 cumulative minutes of downtime per

has ISO 27001 certification (information

with the highest availability, integrity

year: the Data Centers operated by

security). Moreover, it is the proud

and confidentiality,” adds Bruno Fery.

EBRC have actually never experienced

holder of ISO 50001, dealing with

Over the years, EBRC was able to

an interruption of service since 2000,

energy management and efficiency.

position itself as a strategic partner,

that means 100% availability. Moreover,

“All those certifications allow us to

working hand in hand with international

and thanks to its ISO certifications, HDS

answer the needs of our clients, whether

players with the highest requirements

(Health Data Host), PCI DSS (Payment

it concerns business continuity, the

and needs in terms of availability and

E

2020-2021 EDITION

18

business continuity. “In recent years,

worldwide. He notes, “the Grand-Duchy

(Data Centers Design Professional, Data

clients have been requesting flexible

is strategically located in the heart of

Centers Energy Professional) or TIA 942,

services such as a hybrid cloud and

Europe, with an optical fibre connection

with all team members taking ITIL training

managed services, which are now

linking it with major European cities,

classes to deal with incidents, changes

provided by EBRC and add significant

allowing the development of cross-

and in order be able to communicate

value to our global offering. The

border activities, low latency connectivity,

efficiently with the clients.

combination of these services with our

etc”. The regulatory environment allows

Each year, competencies are measured

Data Center expertise and knowledge

the development of companies and

and evaluated through a personal

gives EBRC a competitive advantage

activities in a demanding yet safe

development plan, combining the

with a wider portfolio,” comments the

environment. Besides, an educated

experts’ wishes and the needs of the

Head of Data Center. In the last few

pool of talent, with unique expertise

Data Center department within EBRC.

months, the concept of resilience has

and multilingual skills, is available in

“A training programme is then defined:

been widely used: EBRC has been

Luxembourg.

we advocate training and development,

FOR THE LAST 10-12 YEARS, THE MANAGEMENT OF DATA CENTERS AND ITS RELATED ACTIVITIES HAS EVOLVED CONSIDERABLY. BACK THEN, WE USED TO TALK MAINLY ABOUT FACILITY MANAGEMENT WHEN TODAY IT REFERS TO ACTUAL OPERATIONAL MANAGEMENT OF DATA CENTERS. promoting it for almost 20 years, making “resilience” and “Cyber-Resilience”

— A TEAM OF SEASONED AND CERTIFIED EXPERTS

whether it concerns hard or soft skills.

Certifications bring additional value,

two of the main components of its

“For the last 10-12 years, the management

especially when it comes to our advisory

DNA. As the digital economy keeps

of Data Centers and its related activities

services offer,” comments Bruno Fery.

on growing and developing, the quality

has evolved considerably. Back then,

and availability of infrastructure remain

we used to talk mainly about facility

all the more important. By covering

management when today it refers to

CENTRE OF THE GLOBAL

services from Data Centers to various

actual operational management of Data

STRATEGY OF EBRC

cloud offerings, including the hybrid

Centers”, adds Bruno Fery describing

As explained earlier, CSR is a key

cloud and by providing a full range of

EBRC’s Data Center experts. Team

element of overall EBRC strategy.

advisory services, EBRC has often

members are in a constant process of

Back in 2010, also, it was one of

demonstrated its significant value on all

developing their skills, and retraining

the first companies in Luxembourg

the entire digital value chain, eventually

when necessary, with most of them today

to obtain the “CSR label” delivered

helping its clients improve their services

being the proud holders of individual

by INDR (National institute for the

and products. Lately, EBRC has been

accreditations and certifications. Bruno

sustainable development and CSR),

involved in the France and Germany-

notes that: “this certification strategy

and participates in the POST Group

powered Gaia-X project, which aims at

started back in 2010 and our Data

annual report, which combines financial

developing common requirements for

Center services department currently

and non-financial results. “Through

European data infrastructure.

counts four Tier designers and two

these actions, and notably when

Bruno Fery also underlines the fact

certified experts in the management

it comes to our Data Centers, our

that Luxembourg has the highest

of operations, processes and service

main concern is the protection of the

concentration of Tier IV Data Centers

providers”. Others are certified by CNet

environment and we are therefore

— SUSTAINABILITY AT THE

19

Bruno Fery Head of Data Center Services - EBRC

constantly working on improving power

warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius”. “In

footprint, between 2010 and 2020. At

and energy management”, underlines

this respect, we are leading a discussion

the European level, EBRC actively

Bruno Fery. He continues: “We work

around the future of Data Centers: how

participates in the Code of Conduct

on a daily basis on such topics and

to design them? How to operate them?

Europe initiative, and therefore produces

are regularly audited. We decided

Which standards are required? What

an annual report, with a focus on results

to implement the latest – and most

about ISO certifications?” he asks.

obtained and actions taken.

efficient – technologies, have a Kyoto

Many industry players get together to

Through its global approach – putting

cooling system, etc. It falls within our

define what and how future Data Centers

sustainability, resilience, security and

constant improvement processes”.

could be in the next years: “several

availability at the centre – , EBRC has

The company founded in 2000 is also

players discuss, exchange and explore

developed into a strategic partner

a founding member of and member

the Data Centers of the future. Even

for companies looking for flexibility,

of the board of EUDCA – European

though they are competitors, they all

agility and innovation in terms of

Data Centre Association. Bruno Fery

work together towards a common goal

digital solutions. Ranging from Data

takes part in the technical committee,

which is reducing the global footprint

Center services and multiple cloud

which notably focuses on the newest

and therefore protect the environment”.

offers to awarded managed services,

European registrations and objectives

EBRC is actually engaged in several

cybersecurity and the brand new

towards 2030 and 2050. He adds: “in

other local and international initiatives

“Trusted IT Services on Demand”,

30 years, we have the aim of achieving

aiming at lowering the carbon footprint

the company which “specialises in

carbon neutrality, which means having

and at improving energy efficiency. It

the management and protection of

a balance between emitting carbon and

participates notably in a project led

sensitive information” provides its

absorbing carbon from the atmosphere

by FEDIL and the Ministry of the

clients with the most efficient solutions

in carbon sinks. It is one of the main

Environment in Luxembourg, which

while working constantly on lowering

initiatives in order to limit global

targets a decrease by 14% of the carbon

its carbon footprint.

2020-2021 EDITION

20

PARTNE RS

PRO GRAMME

Interview by Stéphane Etienne, Hypallages

EBRC AND THE UNIVERSITY OF STRASBOURG:

A WINNING PARTNERSHIP

High service availability, 120 computer racks that can accommodate up to 5,000 servers, a usable surface area of 450 m²: the Data Center of the University of Strasbourg is the result of an ambitious project initiated in 2013. This state-of-the-art infrastructure, which has been operational since November 2019, aims at providing the university and its institutional and academic partners with a unique hosting facility for their IT equipment and data. The Real Estate Department and the Digital Department called upon EBRC to design and build this highly technical space. Romaric David, Head of the Data Center at the University of Strasbourg, describes the background of this successful partnership.

— A PARTNERSHIP FORGED FROM THE OUTSET OF THE PROJECT

of a Data Center expert. We needed a partner with both certifications and concrete references who could provide

“Given that this was a large-scale project and that it will likely

us with practical feedback. For a project to be successful,

remain the only one of its kind, the University of Strasbourg

you have to pay attention to a thousand details and we did

wanted to get the best help possible and enlisted the advice

not have enough experience in this area. EBRC immediately

— E B R C A N D T H E U N I V E R S I T Y O F S T R A S B O U R G : A W I N N I N G PA R T N E R S H I P —

21

impressed us with the professionalism of its teams and its

efficient in France, with a PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness)

multiple certifications. In particular, it is the only company

of 1.25. The European Commission has also certified that our

in the world to have three Tier IV Data Centers certified by

Data Center meets the criteria of the Code of Conduct for

Uptime Institute. For us, this was undoubtedly a guarantee

Energy Efficiency, meeting 190 of the 200 criteria, earning

of quality.”

it a European Code of Conduct Award in 2019.”

“EBRC has virtually been involved in the project from the

“This award was obtained thanks to the dual innovation of hot

outset. The project was carried out in two phases. During

and cold air flow containment for the racks in the computer

the construction phase, the company provided support to

rooms, combined with geothermal energy used for heat

the Real Estate Department in the capacity of assistant to

exchanges. To achieve this, two wells were drilled in order

the project owner. Practically, EBRC helped design and

to capture water from the water table below the building,

implement the project. It then took part in the building

is then used to cool the Data Center. The heat produced

development phase, which was led by the Digital Department.

by the IT equipment is recovered by a heat pump and is

Its methodology and its stringent requirements enabled

used to heat part of the campus, thus optimising energy

us to check that all the functionalities provided for in the

use and reducing the carbon footprint.”

specifications were present and in perfect working order.”

— IN THE END, A TOTAL SUCCESS

OUR DATA CENTER IS ONE OF THE MOST ENERGY-EFFICIENT IN FRANCE

“Today, after only a few months of operation, we are already reaping the benefits. Our site will soon become one of the regional Data Centers for higher education and research that are in the process of receiving certification. We receive many requests for hosting, not only from the teaching and research world, which is our main target audience, but also from teaching hospitals, engineering schools in Alsace and the private sector. The interest garnered from the private

— A SECURE, REDUNDANT, POWERFUL AND GREEN DATA CENTER “After six years of intensive work, we are more than satisfied

sector is the best proof that our Data Center is ultimately a success story, particularly as a result of our partnership with EBRC.”

with the result. Although not officially certified, our Data Center meets the highest international standards in terms of security, redundancy and resilience. Access control is fully secured and all equipment is duplicated as set out in Uptime Institute’s Tier III level requirements, ensuring less than 1.6 hours of downtime per year. In addition to its enormous hosting capacity, our Data Center stands out as having an above-average electrical density. It is powered by two transformer stations that are entirely independent of each other. It has a power of 1.2 megawatts, i.e. an average of 10kW per computer bay with a peak of up to 25-30 kW for some of them. Our research units within the university thus have the necessary capacity for a highperformance computing centre (HPC), which is particularly energy-intensive. This electrical system, supplemented by very high-efficiency inverters and two generators that are immediately operational when needed, was indispensable.”

“More value added by the project is its emphasis on eco-

Photo credit: University of Strasbourg

responsibility. Our Data Center is one of the most energy-

2020-2021 EDITION

22

PARTNE RS

PRO GRAMME

Christophe Bourbier CEO - Limonetik Photo credit: Limonetik

Interview by Stéphane Etienne, Hypallages

LIMONETIK,

A REFERENCE IN THE WORLD OF DIGITAL PAYMENTS The payment industry has undergone profound changes in recent years. Online services using instantaneous and international electronic transactions have widely contributed to its development.

Cash payments are gradually giving way to a multitude of virtual payment methods. However, as the payment experience becomes simpler and more integrated for customers, the back-office verification and management tasks become increasingly complex. The French company Limonetik has made this its speciality and now simplifies payment services processes in a rational way.

We spoke to its co-founder and CEO, Christophe Bourbier, an EBRC customer since 2012.

— L I M O N E T I K , A R E F E R E N C E I N T H E W O R L D O F D I G I TA L PAY M E N T S —

— In your opinion, what are the main challenges facing the payment industry?

This industry has become considerably more international and complex. I will give you a simple example to illustrate my point. Let’s imagine a Chinese tourist buying a luxury bag from a major

23

CASH PAYMENTS ARE GRADUALLY GIVING WAY TO A MULTITUDE OF VIRTUAL PAYMENT METHODS.

Parisian retailer and paying for it with her e-wallet. The transaction is a perfectly

— WHAT SOLUTION DO YOU

common ground. They were direct, offered

simple one for the customer. All she

OFFER TO MEET THIS

practical solutions and were proactive.

has to do is display the QR code on

GROWING COMPLEXITY?

They reassured us and were able to

her smartphone and have it scanned

We are one of the few payment

provide us with support with difficult

by the cashier. Behind the scenes,

platforms to offer a full-service solution

choices or negotiations. The fact that

however, the transaction is a little more

on demand. We offer access to 185 -

they work with many financial institutions

difficult to manage. The money will be

soon to be 250 - payment methods

and are PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry

transferred from a Chinese account

around the world, whether in India,

Data Security Standard) certified was

to the store’s account in Paris, and

the United States, South Africa or

also a decisive argument for us.

charges will be levied by the mobile

Europe. Through a single API, we offer

Over time, our partnership solidified and

payment company.

advanced services ranging from simple

even expanded as a result of our desire,

Today, more than 30% of mobile

processing, fund collection and the

in 2018, to implement an ambitious CSR

t r a n s a c t i o n s a re c ro s s - b o rd e r

reconciliation of financial transactions

policy within our company. We were

transactions. Contrary to what one

through currency conversion, detailed

pleasantly surprised to find that EBRC was

might think, bank cards no longer have

transaction reporting, distribution of

100% compliant with our environmental

a monopoly. Around three quarters of

payments from an unlimited number of

specifications. EBRC powers its five Data

online transactions are now carried out

vendors and commission calculation. We

Centers using entirely green energy, from

using alternative payment methods

also check the identities of all involved

wind or hydraulic power plants, and has

such as AliPay, WeChat Pay, Apple Pay

parties and ensure compliance with

invested heavily in energy optimisation

or Google Pay, to name just the best

relevant regulations. In short, we ensure

solutions (Kyoto wheels, heat pumps,

known. In total, there are more than 300

that international payments are child’s

free cooling, cold corridors, etc.) which

different payment methods worldwide.

play for all our customers and partners.

reduce energy consumption and enable

Therefore, both trends - cross-border

Thanks to this positioning, one of the

the company to save more than 10,000

payments and the increasing number

most disruptive in the payments market,

tonnes of CO2 per year.

of payment methods - will intensify in

we have been able to enter into major

Finally, what also reinforces our decision

the coming years.

contracts with the largest international

to continue working with them is their

This development affects all

PSPs and BtoB marketplaces. The

impressive production and storage

stakeholders in the value chain:

transactions we manage grew by almost

capacity. Our transaction volumes have

Payment Service Providers (PSPs),

70% per year over the last three years.

grown exponentially in recent years and

merchants, marketplaces, purchasers,

all our data is hosted with them. Today,

airlines and the tourism industry. They

—E BRC has been your partner

we have 1.5 billion Euros in transactions

are, and will increasingly be required

for more than 8 years. What

per year and we expect to reach 2 billion

to, manage money flows from all over

attracted you to EBRC and why

Euros by the end of this year. We have

the world almost instantaneously using

do you continue to trust it?

become a major customer for EBRC

a variety of payment methods, each

Beyond the exceptional quality of EBRC’s

and we hope to become even more so

with its own business rules. In short,

infrastructure, it is the expertise of the

in the future. For us, that would be the

a real headache!

people with whom we immediately found

best proof of our success!

2020-2021 EDITION

24

P A R T N E R S P R O G R A M M E

Jacques Pütz CEO - LUXHUB Yves Reding CEO - EBRC

Interview by Juliette Paoli, Solutions Numériques

OPEN BANKING LUXHUB:

FROM PSD2 TO THE FINANCIAL SERVICES MARKETPLACE The LuxHub start-up offers services which help banks and other electronic payment services to comply with the requirements of the EU Payment Services Directive, aka PSD2, as well as solutions to connect banking institutions and FinTechs via secure APIs.

L

UXHUB was created as a result of a joint initiative

customers’ payment data with TPPs in a secure manner.

by four major Luxembourg-based banks (BCEE,

“In this context, banks have the same legal obligation

BGL BNP Paribas, BANQUE RAIFFEISEN and

to provide technical interfaces that allow third parties to

POST Luxembourg) which joined forces to meet

connect to the end customer with their consent. Banks have

a new regulatory obligation, the European Payment Services

thus become service providers, a profession which is not

Directive, better known as PSD2.

their own and which they have not mastered”, explained

It should be recalled that PSD2 is notably based a major

Jacques Pütz, CEO of LuxHub. They have to deal with a

goal: secure communication between banks and Third

heavy IT legacy and slow strategy implementation.

Party Providers (TPPs) comprised of account aggregators and payment initiators. Banks have had to find a way to

— SIMPLIFIED COMPLIANCE

set up a system for sharing the information they hold about

Created in 2018, this start-up succeeded “in record time”,

—

OPE NB A NKING LUXHUB : FR OM PSD 2 T O T H E F I N AN C I AL SE RV I C E S MARK E T PL AC E —

25

(less than 12 months) in making available to the financial

it joined the list of the RegTech 100, a worldwide ranking of

and digital ecosystem a “by design secure” platform it This

the 100 most innovative RegTechs. This is great recognition

is great recognition developed to help banks - not just the

for a start-up with 24 employees, comprising 11 different

4 that created it - and electronic money institutions comply

nationalities, and whose average age of 41 reveals all the

with the requirements of these new regulations. “We are

experience available on-hand. The company has 38 customers

opening this platform to other entities to help them achieve

and manages 2.5 million accounts. It has a presence in 10

compliance.” The start-up is now active in 10 countries

European countries.

and works for 38 banks. Its first asset is obvious, summed up in this sentence from its director: “We understand our

— MANAGING GROWTH

customers”. Its second asset is no less obvious: “We are

Its biggest challenge today is to manage its growth efficiently,

audited, highly secure and monitored by regulators.”

according to CEO Jacques Pütz. Growth in Europe benefits

The platform is, in fact, obviously not exposed in the Public

from PSD2, a regulation which is proving to be a driver of

Cloud, but is hosted by Luxembourg-based European IT

growth despite the constraints it imposes. One thing is

services operator EBRC in its Trusted Cloud Europe. The

certain: founded by four banks, “LUXHUB will not be sold

choice of EBRC is justified “because it is a Tier IV” and

to the first one who puts money on the table,” which makes

offers “a highly secure environment”.

it very different from other FinTechs.

— A SINGLE API AND A MARKETPLACE

— EBRC, GUARANTEES OF SECURITY

Although the LUXHUB start-up offers services helping banks and other electronic payment services comply with

AND RESILIENCE “When it came to setting up the infrastructure on which

the PSD2 requirements, it also offers solutions to connect

to develop our activities, we chose EBRC,” said Claude

banking institutions and Fintechs via secure APIs.

Meurisse, COO of LUXHUB. “We made this choice for a

“We have new value-added services around this platform”,

variety of reasons, in particular because of EBRC’s location

explained the CEO. LUXHUB One is an integration layer

in Luxembourg. This means it meets the local data hosting

providing access to any bank via a single API, whereas the

requirements of certain customers, such as private banks, but

bank interfaces are completely heterogeneous and lack any

also for the guarantees of security and resilience offered by an

form of standardisation. Credit institutions and third parties

FSP specialised in the management of sensitive information.

can thus bundle large numbers of payment accounts via

Other factors also played a role, like the fact that the company

this standardised API.

has been active for many years, which is a guarantee of

LUXHUB will also launch its own marketplace, a kind of

stability, and the numerous certifications held by EBRC”.

“Amazon for financial services”, by reusing the platform it

“I was particularly impressed by the organisation and structuring

set up. “The banker can connect and use the services of

of the EBRC teams during the implementation of the project,”

different providers”. Banks will be able to consult a catalogue

added Jacques Pütz, CEO of LUXHUB. “As with any project,

of FinTech and RegTech companies and test their services. The

ours was subject to deviations and changes,” he added, “but

key advantages is a single point of connection and standard

the EBRC consultants demonstrated a great deal of flexibility

security. The LUXHUB Marketplace thus aims at becoming

and a great ability to listen. Throughout the project, we were

a one-stop API shop for the European financial ecosystem.

able to deliver on time”.

Moreover, LUXHUB organises “Open Banking Parties” linking

EBRC provides the ability to easily scale up. This scalability and

banks and third-party providers. Two events already took

agility enable LUXHUB to consider deploying new services,

place in Luxembourg, and the start-up plans to replicate

based in particular on EBRC’s Kubernetes-as-a-Service

the experience in Paris soon.

offering and the accompanying security tools. Security is a major component of LUXHUB’s products and services and

— A START-UP HONOURED WITH TWO AWARDS

the start-up can rely on EBRC and its DevSecOps approach

In June 2019, LUXHUB was ranked the second largest open

which integrates security by design. The certifications that

banking hub in Europe according to Innopay, at the annual

EBRC holds, ISO 27001 in particular, are also valuable assets

conference of the Euro Banking Association. In September,

for the company and its customers.

2020-2021 EDITION

26

PARTNE RS

PROGRAMME

Eric Mouilleron Founder and CEO BANKABLE

Interview by Michaël Renotte, Youneek

BANKABLE RELIES ON EBRC

EBRC FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT Bankable, the British FinTech whose Banking-as-a-Service platform is hosted in EBRC’s Tier IV Data Centers, recently entered into a strategic partnership with the payments giant Visa. Eric Mouilleron, founder and CEO, explains the reasons for its success and reveals the company’s ambitions.

B

ankable is a designer of innovative payment

awarded the contract, MoneYou was able to deploy its new

services and a supplier of Banking-as-a-Service

service in two European markets”, said Bankable’s founder.

(BaaS) solutions. Its account and payment card

“In the Netherlands, the bank was able to launch an account

management platform is available as a white-label

linked to a Maestro debit card. In Germany, a credit card was

product or via APIs (Application Programming Interface). It

issued, as our platform is able to support various instruments.”

enables any organisation, whether or not it is regulated (i.e.

With MoneYou, Bankable opted to use existing IT systems,

having its own banking license), to rapidly deploy payment

in accordance with its own technological approach based

solutions: current accounts, virtual accounts and e-wallets,

on compliance with legacy environments. “Accordingly, we

virtual and physical cards, money transfer or cash management

created an agile technical layer to complement the existing

services.

banking engine, our platform then becoming the account

“Bankable was founded in 2010. At the time, we were

management system, the main account from which the real-

pioneers in what has since become Banking-as-a-Service”,

time customer experience was built”, said Eric Mouilleron.

said Eric Mouilleron. “In concrete terms, this means that we

“Gradually, throughout the project, we updated the existing

help financial institutions and others create digital banking

system to enable it to manage aspects such as regulation and

activities. To this end, we rely on our clients’ IT systems and

accounting. However, the entire real-time customer experience

provide them with all the technology required to rapidly

well and truly relies on our platform and its processing,

deploy their digital projects.”

payment card management and digital banking capabilities.”

It is also the company’s policy to work closely with its clients.

— 500,000 CURRENT ACCOUNTS IN RECORD TIME

“Bankable is neither a licence provider nor a consulting firm”,

Bankable thus enabled MoneYou, a subsidiary of the Dutch

said the company’s CEO. “We have developed a platform

banking giant ABN AMRO specialised in online savings, to

which we can configure to meet our clients’ specific needs.

provide current accounts to its 500,000 clients. The FinTech

In this particular case, ABN AMRO’s teams developed the

provided the bank with its capabilities in account creation

front-end of the solution, which enabled the bank to maintain

and management, payment processing, and card issuance

control over aspects such as brand management and customer

and management. “As a result, six months after we were

experience management.”

— B A N K A B L E R E L I E S O N E B R C F O R I T S I N T E R N AT I O N A L D E V E L O P M E N T —

27

— STRICT STANDARDS

the Data Center industry occupies in the Luxembourg

This dual approach enables Bankable’s clients to focus

financial centre”, said Bankable’s CEO. “In addition to the

on the commercial aspects of their project, as the FinTech

priority placed by government authorities on cutting-edge

takes care of the creation, launch and management of the

infrastructures and connectivity solutions, we have found

product. “Our ability to manage the product throughout its

in EBRC a partner able to meet our clients’ requirements.

lifecycle is an important consideration for our clients in the

We have developed a perfect understanding with the EBRC

banking sector”, said Eric Mouilleron. “We comply with very

teams, with which we share a culture of excellence and

strict standards. Not only do we have SOC 2 certification, a

which are also able to meet all of our technical constraints.

banking standard, but we also have PCI DSS, a data security

EBRC’s Tier IV Data Centers and their many certifications

standard applicable to the payment card industry, and ISO

guarantee excellent quality of service combined with the

27001 certification. Very few stakeholders in the market

highest levels of security and availability.”

hold all of those certifications”, he added. “Every year, we

“In addition, the very nature of EBRC’s shareholding structure,

undergo penetration tests at the request of various banks.

and the fact that the company is indirectly and wholly owned

Our infrastructure and our applications are of strategic

by the state, is a guarantee of stability and sustainability

importance for those banks, since we process their clients’

for us and for our clients. Finally, although Bankable is an

critical data.”

English company, it must be kept in mind that 85% of our income comes from international business. As a result of

— SERVING A GLOBAL CLIENT BASE FROM LUXEMBOURG

being hosted in Luxembourg, we enjoy a de facto Brexitproof infrastructure”, he said wryly.

Bankable has the particularity of counting many banks among its clients, with the corollary that the company must comply with the highest standards of security and quality.

— A POWERFUL CATALYST FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

“This also benefits our non-banking clients, essentially

In April 2019, Bankable received investment from and

other FinTechs and large accounts, which can therefore

entered into a global partnership with Visa. This partnership

take advantage of a proven architecture that is used 24/7

will enable the members of the Visa network around the

by financial institutions with high requirements”, said

world to access the Bankable platform and to deploy

Eric Mouilleron. Bankable has developed a network

digital banking and real-time payment services.

of distributors for its platform. The distributors, which

“Our common strategy involves relying on the 21,000

are currently number 25, are banks and FinTechs which

members of the Visa network to promote innovation in those

themselves have many clients. The only exceptions to

banks”, said the founder of Bankable. “Most of them use

this distribution method are a few very large companies

legacy architecture. Our platform enables them to launch

active in the aviation or engineering sectors with which the

new products in record time while preserving existing IT

company works directly.

assets. We have already opened two subsidiaries on other

“We serve many clients in Europe – in Germany, France,

continents, one in Dubai and the other in New York, to

the Netherlands and the Scandinavian countries”, said

bring us closer to Visa’s customers and to enable us to

Eric Mouilleron. “Some of our clients have global operations.

better serve them.”

We mainly work with those companies through Corporate Expenses programmes that must be deployable in all the

— A STRONG PARTNER

countries in which they operate. As a result, we serve some

“Our ambition is to serve ever larger international clients in

of our clients in over 40 countries from our infrastructure

more and more countries through single contracts, using

in Luxembourg”, he explained.

our unique ecosystem of turnkey solutions”, said Eric Mouilleron. “It is therefore crucial for us to have been able

— BANKABLE AND EBRC: A COMMON CULTURE OF EXCELLENCE

to build a privileged relationship with a major stakeholder in the financial industry such as Visa. However, it is equally

“When we opted for EBRC to host our infrastructure, the

crucial to be able to rely on a strong technology partner that

decision was especially based on the special place that

is able to support this growth. And that partner is EBRC.”

2020-2021 EDITION

28

PARTNE RS

PRO GRAMME

Georges Berscheid CTO - Finologee

Interview by Sébastien Lambotte, T2U

THE ADVANTAGES OF DEVOPS

WITHIN A TRUSTED CLOUD With its Trusted Cloud Europe, EBRC is able to offer innovative services to support the digital transformation journeys of its clients. Its Kubernetes as a Service (KaaS) solution makes it possible to automate the process development and application implementation; thus enabling the clients to gain flexibility by implementing continual deployment processes.

—

T HE

A DVANTAGES

OF

DE V O PS

WITHIN

A

TRUSTE D

CL OUD

—

29

O

rganisations making extensive use of digital tools have to continuously boost their adaptative capacity: a necessity to meet client demands but also to face increasingly tough competitive

pressure. Service offerings should continuously evolve to meet these challenges. Time-to-market has to be cut to a minimum, as each new functionality is rolled out. “To achieve this, our clients seek to automate operational processes linked to the development, deployment and use of IT applications,” explains Yuri Colombi, Head of Solutions & Innovation at

this on-going work, we ensure it incorporates the latest

EBRC. “We want to support our clients in their process

developments by Kubernetes and its associated eco-system.

of adopting a DevOps approach, using our Trusted Cloud

For example, we are working on a new service which will

Europe platform hosted in Luxembourg.”

automatically check each deployed container before it goes into production, thus ensuring there are no vulnerabilities,”

— A CONTAINERISATION PLATFORM FOR GREATER AGILITY

explains EBRC’s Head of Solutions & Innovation. “This creates real added value, based on our security and business continuity

With this in mind, EBRC has implemented its new Kubernetes-

expertise, without creating additional burdens on the client’s

as-a-Service offering. This is a unique containerisation

deployment process. In addition, throughout the platform,

platform, hosted and managed from EBRC infrastructure

the user has access to numerous indicators related to the

in Luxembourg. It enables organisations to manage their

availability, performance and use of the various applications.”

applications from their development to the go-live, all within EBRC’s secure environment. No call to the IT resource

— FINOLOGEE: NOW IN FULL AUTONOMY

manager is required. “Our teams have been working on

Finologee, a FinTech that enables financial sector players

this service since 2017, with the goal of meeting the needs

to move to open banking, was one of the first users of this

of Luxembourg’s financial players, energy companies,

platform. “To help us grow we equipped ourselves with an

health services providers and more,” adds Yuri Colombi.

ecosystem of tools which automates many stages of our

“Many of these activities are highly regulated and should

development as well as implementing numerous control

meet the highest levels of data security, as well as unique

functions. This encompasses everything from writing a

market challenges. In this framework, local data hosting is

new line of code to putting into production a new version

usually a vital component.” EBRC was therefore keen to

of an application,” explains Georges Berscheid, the CTO

give these clients maximum flexibility, while enabling them

of Finologee. “Using containerisation technology through

to meet supervisory requirements easily. “Thus, we give our

Kubernetes allows us to develop quickly without making

clients a single locally-based managed platform to deploy

us dependent on a particular service provider.”

applications with speed and flexibility, without them having

For Finologee – and especially for their clients – it was

to worry about the underlying infrastructure. Either with an

important for its solutions to be run from a Luxembourg-

on-premise solution (in EBRC’s Data Centers) or on hyper

based, regulated Professionals of the Financial Sector (PFS)

clouds such as Microsoft Azure or AWS,” says Yuri Colombi.

compliant environment. “EBRC’s hybrid platform is open to the public cloud, thus it enables us to develop and test

— GUARANTEED TRANSPARENCY AND SECURITY

our applications in that environment, while maintaining a

The platform is based on open-source technology, a de facto

hyper-secure production environment that complies with

standard, thus guaranteeing the highest level of transparency

financial sector regulatory requirements. These are the key

for all users. It also gives real independence in the management

advantages of EBRC’s Trusted Cloud Europe,” explains

and deployment of the application environment. “We work

Georges Berscheid. “As all of this operates in an integrated

to make our clients as autonomous as possible,” says Yuri

and transparent way, our containers can be quickly moved

Colombi. “We ensure that the platform is available at any

from a public model to private production via EBRC’s hybrid

time, enabling the client to use it as they wish. As part of

cloud service.”

2020-2021 EDITION

30

PARTNE RS

PRO GRAMME

Interview by Sébastien Lambotte, T2U

I-HUB STRENGTHENS ITS SERVICE CONTINUITY

WITH EBRC AND ACHIEVES ISO 22301 CERTIFICATION

i-Hub worked with EBRC to achieve ISO 22301 certification for its Management System of Activity Continuity. By integrating this norm in the heart of its organisation, i-Hub, one of POST Luxembourg Group’s subsidiaries, strengthens its outsourced AML/KYC process management systems and is now in an even better position to meet its client requirements.

support from the management as they seek the highest

S

this process we wanted to guarantee the sustainability of

standards. In February 2019, the firm decided to take the path towards achieving ISO 22301 certification. This “specifies the requirements to plan, implement, put to work, manage, revise, maintain and continuously improve a documented management system to protect against disruptive incidents, reduce their likelihood of occurring, to prepare, to react and to restore after an incident” (source ISO.org). “With

ince 2017 i-Hub has developed innovative

our activity, to preserve our reputation, and above all, to

solutions that help financial sector businesses

reinforce the trust our clients put in our services,” Mr Correia

ensure their KYC (Know Your Customer) and

added. “We are developing structured solutions suitable

AML/CTF (Anti-Money Laundering/Counter

for any potential crisis, and seeking every opportunity to

Terrorism Financing) compliance. This subsidiary of the POST

ensure excellence and operational resilience.”

Luxembourg group offers a unique service featuring the collection, verification, maintenance and storage of identity

— REINFORCE CONTINUITY MANAGEMENT

data and documents. i-Hub cuts the administrative burden

To integrate ISO norms in the heart of its processes, i-Hub

by offering its clients and their partners secure access to a

called on the expertise of EBRC’s continuity specialists. An

personal digital dossier including all necessary information. “We

early step was to lead a process audit, which demonstrated

manage data and documents linked to the identities of our

that best practices were already in place. These were

clients’ clients. It is essential that we can guarantee the highest

then documented while the finishing touches were put to

level of security, integrity, availability and confidentiality,”

being compliant with ISO 22301. “Several months of work

commented José Correia, i-Hub’s Chief Administration

were required, particularly completing and formalising

Officer, CISO and Business Continuity Manager. “Since we

documentation, implementing new processes, and creating

were founded, we have continually invested in security, but

a system of continuity management which put us in line

also in operational continuity management, as we know these

with best practices regarding continuous improvement and

are essential to winning and maintaining our clients’ trust.”

performance measurement,” Mr Correia added.

The i-Hub team supported by EBRC consultants worked

CONTINUITY: A TRUST VECTOR

with the staff to understand normal work processes and the

Supervised by the financial sector regulator the CSSF as

approach to a range of related risks. “The business impact

i-Hub must meet demanding requirements. As regards

analysis (BIA) sessions and the risk analysis enabled us to map

business continuity, internal teams are able to rely on strong

and evaluate the criticality of these activities and the related

31

From left to right: Christophe Ruppert, EBRC - Barbara Risse, EBRC - Quentin Mouzard, EBRC - José Correia, i-Hub

threats, to identify what resources are needed, to identify

work was carried out remotely, as new modes of supervision

internal and external stakeholders, to define the interruption

were implemented to limit the virus spread. “A continuity

tolerance levels, and create a timetable for the resumption of

management system must, above all, give the business

activities,” commented Barbara Risse, an EBRC Business

the capabilities to react effectively as quickly as possible

Continuity Management consultant. “From this we can

to all eventualities, enabling each team to contribute to the

create a coherent, effective continuity strategy including

maintenance of activity,” explained Christophe Ruppert,

staff, buildings, public authorities, suppliers, applications,

a Senior Business Continuity Management consultant with

data, and telecommunications services,” noted Quentin

EBRC. “It requires perfect understanding of the business, and

Mouzard, also an EBRC Business Continuity Management

effective management support to give the organisation a real

consultant. From this came the business continuity plans, all

culture of resilience to its core. A clear sense of committment

documented and tailored for each activity. “The role of this

by everyone within i-Hub can be felt, from the management

document is to support department heads when they face a

to every team, coupled with professional competence and

major incident such as the lack of availability of employees

a focus on business objectives,” Mr Ruppert added.

or buildings, the outage of a critical service or technology provided by third parties, a pandemic and so on. This is a

— TEAM WORK

detailed document that will be consulted in a crisis. First, it

An audit of all i-Hub’s activities by the accredited independent

enables essential activities to resume, followed by a return

firm Bureau Veritas showed full compliance with ISO 22301.

to normal as soon as possible,” added Ms Risse.

The overall document quality and the management system were highlighted by the auditor, who was incidentally leading its

— COVID-19 HAS BEEN A REAL-TIME TEST

first remote audit . “Passing the certification is the culmination

The pandemic emerged in the middle the external audit

of substantial teamwork, featuring expertise and support

certification process, which enabled i-Hub and its staff to test

from EBRC. Throughout the project, there was a positive

the effectiveness of its recent business continuity management

spirit which enabled us to progress in a smooth, coordinated

system. While many considered the pandemic as a major

fashion,” Mr Correia noted.

crisis, i-Hub and its partners saw an opportunity. They

“With ISO 22301 certification, we meet our clients’ demands

reacted quickly, and needed only minimal effort to document

for integrated, robust, proven solutions, and we satisfy our

their plans (regarding continuity, crisis communication, IT

regulatory supervisor as well. This certification matches

continuity, and more) as well as the continuity policy and

i-Hub’s philosophy perfectly in terms of reliability, and

strategy required during this unique period. Henceforth the

service quality, sustaining our clients’ activities.”

2020-2021 EDITION

The Inuksuk represents the HEART of EBRC: Human, Excellence, Agility, Responsibility, Trust

Inuksuk Inuk = human being suk = substitute, acting on behalf of Inuksuks are piles of stones which serve as a reference point (orientation = consulting), but also, a hiding place (store = Data Centre).

They are closely associated with orientation and resilience; with survival in a hostile world. Their longevity is legendary, as well as their resistance to the elements.

This symbol, our logo, ties in perfectly with the polar iconography, resilience, solidarity and orientation. It is a concept which stands out and is coherent with our company history.

w w w. e b r c. c o m