stantly making announcements about our current financial systems, there’s always a chance that there will be more regulations to come further down the line. “I hope that when regulators look into it they find out that Basel II actually covers a big part of the issues that are needed,” says Schleidt, stressing that too much regulation could itself be detrimental to the industry. “But time will tell.”
Time goes by It is the way technology is being used to develop business models that is ultimately the key for Schleidt. The digital banking programme that he has already discussed is very much a program that, along with other initiatives, has been driven up by the IT organisation of the bank. “When we talk about business development, we have various business areas involved to ensure we are in alignment in our priorities,” notes Schleidt, “and behind the scenes we’re talking about how our service-oriented architecture (SOA) should evolve so we can develop things and see what new technologies we need to bring on board.
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“On one side we’re being very proactive toward what business development we should do within the bank and then we’re also trying to make sure that we drive the IT side of our development in the right direction.” After 20 years at Danske Bank, Schleidt is positive as he looks to the future. “Of course its always good to have a lot of domain knowledge,” he notes, “but on the other hand we do try to take in a lot of new candidates directly from universities, and business and IT people from outside the walls of the bank.” He believes it is important that the bank’s environment allows fresh ideas to be cultivated, challenging the senior management team. “You can risk failure if you have a management team where there’s not enough fresh blood,” he notes. “I think we’re aware of that and trying to do that in our own way.” As IT becomes more capable of bringing in innovation and new ways of looking at systems within the management field, Danske Bank continues to change. Schleidt notes that during the short term, with the financial crisis, Danske Bank’s focus is going to be about making sure they are getting all the benefi ts out of the current project portfolio that they have in place. One thing is certain, change for our banking systems is coming, and thankfully, despite all the indecision and negativity, there are still places where ‘change’ is being touted as a positive thing. And Danske Bank, at least, remains one financial institution that isn’t afraid of the changing landscape of our economy. “There’s no doubt that IT is becoming more and more important,” concludes Schleidt, “I don’t know whether it’s the brain or the heart of the bank, but there is a certainty that if the IT doesn’t work, then the bank doesn’t work.”
Although it’s banking activities can be traced further back, the Danske Bank Group came into being, in legal terms, when it began to establish subsidiaries in the twentieth century and presented its first consolidated annual accounts in 1980.
1975 – The Group saw little scope for further expansion in Denmark. But the expanding export markets provided opportunities internationally and the Group developed a new strategy, opening of Danske Bank International in Luxembourg in 1976.
1990 – Three banks,
1997-2005 – The Group
Handelsbanken, Provinsbanken and Den Danske Bank, merged under the name of Den Danske Bank as a result of the liberalisation of Danish banking legislation. The integration of the three banks’ IT systems gave the Group a technological lead.
had been doing business with companies in Northern Europe for many years, so it established branches in Oslo, Stockholm and Helsinki. Its international operations were further expanded in 2005 with the acquisition of National Irish Bank in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Bank in Northern Ireland.
2007 – The Group strengthened its position in the northern European markets again with the purchase of Sampo Bank. The purchase included Sampo Pankki in Finland as well as Sampo bankas in Lithuania.
www.fsteurope.com
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