Technology Banker May/June 2014 by Technology Banker

The Voice of Technology and Finance in Africa

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May / June 2014 ÂŁ3.99

Big Data, Big Insights Driving data protection

costs down How to get the best deal from data management vendors

Banking on the Cloud The big benefits and major challenges of the Cloud for African banks

Time for Change on Governance Operational risk and corporate governance regulations in African banks

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FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to Technology Banker – where African banking and technology meets! Cloud computing offers the financial industry both flexibility and increased analytical capabilities. These two benefits save massive amounts of the time by enabling financial institutions to act on information more quickly. But how do the costs stack up, if we look at cost savings, the speed of rollout and enhanced efficiency? For a CIO, big data is all about harnessing the volume, velocity or variability of data from many sources to support business objectives. For a CEO, it’s about the insights that occur when a company is able to merge data from its operational systems. Our article, ‘Big Data, Big Insights’, looks at how banks can adopt a number of steps to approach big data security, risk and compliance. The magazine also includes a piece by CWG Group CEO, Austin Okere, who writes about the importance of an innovative social impact investment initiative that will help MSMEs to access credit, empower African entrepreneurs and create thousands more jobs. While Clifford Brody looks at data management and explains how a few simple guidelines can protect your bank from high prices and unnecessary risks. I hope you enjoy this issue of Technology Banker. The team always wants your feedback, so we can continue to improve and provide you with the information that you need to take your business forward.

Contact Details: Publisher - Stefan Grossetti stefan.grossetti@technologybanker.com Editor - Ian Powell ian.powell@technologybanker.com Deputy Editor - John Bennett john.bennett@technologybanker.com Sales & Marketing - Jenny Howard jenny.howard@technologybanker.com Managing Editor - Remi Akinjomo remi.akinjomo@technologybanker.com Head of Operations - Monika Derfinakova monika@technologybanker.com Technology Banker Website www.technologybanker.com Technology Banker is a registered trademark of Technology Banker Group. All rights relating to the content of the publication are reserved to the rightful owners.

Technology Banker Offices: Head Office: 10th Floor, 88 Wood Street, London EC2V 7RS Tel: +44 (0) 208 528 1536 Fax: +44 (0) 208 528 1001

ABC Application Approved

Remi Akinjomo

The contents of this publication are subject to copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, whether mechanical or electronic is expressly forbidden without prior written consent of the editor. Views expressed in the publication do not necessarily reflect those of the editor or publisher. We welcome contributions, however, publication is at the discretion of the editor. We also take no responsibility for the return of materials. Whilst every care is taken to ensure accuracy, we cannot be held liable for any inaccuracies. All rights reserved. ©Technology Banker 2014 ISSN 2051-9443

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CONTENTS

The Skye’s the limit An interview with Richard Amafonye about Skye Bank’s vision, future strategy and its roadmap to adopting the Cloud.

NEWS 6 7 8

Banking News Telecom News Security News

COVER STORY 20

Big data, big insights

EXECUTIVE INTERVIEW 13

Blue Skye thinking – the Nigerian bank sets out its vision for the future

FEATURES Pioneering initiative empowers African entrepreneurs CWG 2.0 will enable Nigeria’s 17.7 million MSMEs to access credit from banks and boost their businesses.

Banking on the Cloud

INSIGHT

Driving data protection costs down

INFOGRAPHIC 17

ISACA EMEA IT Risk/Reward Barometer Results

Events for Your Diary

Vendors’ Directory

Time for change on Governance Raj Singh examines operational risk in African banks and the demands now being placed on corporate governance.

Banking on the Cloud Why the Cloud offers African banks a mixture of big benefits and major challenges in the years ahead.

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR To the Editor:

EDITOR’S FEEDBACK:

All industries in the 21st Century that use technology are exposed to cyber attacks, especially when they are accessing the internet. With the advent of technology, information takes on a new meaning, making computer communications a battlefield of modern cyber warfare.

Of all the different industries in the world, is the banking and finance industry the most exposed to cyber attacks?

Banking and finance organisations must therefore constantly innovate and implement measures to mitigate these risks against fraud and cyber attacks.

Emmanuel Akinolu, Nigeria

Regards, Remi Akinjomo, Managing Editor

To the Editor: Can banks in Africa enable their employees to securely accomplish work-related tasks on personally owned devices? Julian Van De Walt, South Africa

EDITOR’S FEEDBACK:

I believe you are talking about ‘bring you own device’ (BYOD). This particular subject is a key topic we will be covering in the upcoming issue of our magazine. As smartphone and tablet technology continues to advance and the workforce becomes increasingly tech savvy, mobility is here to stay.

Regards, Remi Akinjomo, Managing Editor

To the Editor:

EDITOR’S FEEDBACK:

Moving to the Cloud requires different levels of configuration What do we need to know and management from about security when moving networks, servers, storage to the Cloud? applications and devices, etc. May I also suggest that Joseph Keita, Mauritius you read our ‘Banking on the Cloud’ article in this issue? It touches on why the Cloud offers a mixture of big benefits and major challenges to African banks in the years ahead.

IN THE NEXT ISSUE • Mobile Technologies • Retail Banking • Security • Executive Interview • Technically Talking

Regards, Remi Akinjomo, Managing Editor

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BANKING NEWS Deflation hits Zimbabwean banks

nalysts fear that local banks in Zimbabwe will increasingly reel from persistent deflation as a result of the depressed demand for loans getting steadily worse, massive defaults on borrowing by companies and many individuals struggling under a liquidity crunch-gripped economy.

Old Mutual approves share buyback

ld Mutual Zimbabwe Limited shareholders have approved a share buyback meant to facilitate the eventual disposal of shares to indigenous Zimbabweans, in line with the company’s compliance to the country’s indigenisation policy. The transaction is expected to see five million shares worth US$7 million traded over the counter by June 2014. Chairman Johannes Gawaxab said the transaction would eventually result in a 25% shareholding, worth about US$100 million, going to various interest groups. “These shares are not listed and they will be sold over the counter,” he said, describing the transaction as a means to create value for shareholders and customers.

UBA splits operations into two

nited Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc has spilt its operations into two broad divisions, UBA Africa and UBA Nigeria, in order to accelerate the level of achievement of its Project Alpha objectives. Group Managing Director, Phillip Oduoza, said UBA’s Project Alpha is a 3-year road map of key transformation initiatives, designed to reinforce the Group’s strategic positioning and fully exploit the burgeoning opportunities in Africa’s economic renaissance.

The latest Zimbabwe National Statics Agency (Zimstat) figures show the yearon-year inflation rate shed 0.42 percentage points on the March 2013 rate, to close the month of March 2014 at -0.91%. This means prices decreased by an average of 0.91% points between March 2013 and March 2014, as the Zimbabwean economy suffered from a liquidity crunch that pushed prices downwards. Banker and financial advisor Clive Mphambela said deflation could impair the ability of borrowers to repay loans, increase vulnerabilities and sharply reduce bank earnings.

Judge blocks foreign bank from enforcing ICSID decision

he High Court of Tanzania has temporarily restrained Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited and two other respondents from enforcing a decision issued by the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) over the recalculation of power tariffs. High Court Judge Fauz Twaib issued the interim order in favour of two applicants, Independent Power Tanzania Limited (IPTL) and Pan African Power Solution Limited (PAP). It was argued that implementation of the ICSID decision was against public interests and policy, as the government would have been forced to pay about $140 million to Standard Chartered Bank.

Local tycoon sues AfrAsia for US$79 million

frAsia Bank has been sued for about US$79 million by local tycoon Zachary Wazara and his firm Spiritage Zimbabwe Limited for allegedly breaching its obligations in Valley Technologies (Private) Limited, a liquidated telecoms company that was jointly owned by the businessman and the financial institution. AfrAsia, which was formerly Kingdom Bank, is being accused of fraudulently converting to its own use a client’s funds that were received through a facility from the African Export-Import Bank (Afrexibank). Mr Wazara and his associate companies also claim that AfrAsia failed to provide working capital to Valley Technologies, as was agreed in their approved business plan. The five applicants in this High Court case – Spiritage Telecoms, VNet, Zachary Wazara, Spiritage Zimbabwe and Spiritage Business Solutions are jointly claiming damages that amount to a total of US$78,541,707.

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TELECOM NEWS Nigerian regulator cannot distribute fines to customers

Orange rolls out 3G network in Uasin Gishu County

range has rolled out its 3G network service into Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. This will initially cover Eldoret town and its environs, the Moi University locality and Iten. The launch of the Eldoret 3G network is part of an ongoing plan to connect all counties across Kenya to Orange’s high-speed network. Company CEO Mickael Ghossein said they are dedicating part of this year’s capital expenditure investment to rolling out 3G networks across Kenya. “Our 3G network footprint in Kenya now covers Nairobi, Kisumu, Mombasa and Eldoret and will progressively move towards other areas of the country,” he added.

igeria’s telecoms regulator has responded to complaints that fines imposed on mobile networks should be handed to affected customers, rather than the government. Last month, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) imposed fines of N647.5 million (USD3.88 million) on three of the country’s mobile networks for missing

There have been growing calls for customers to benefit from the fines, but NCC’s Executive Vice-Chairman, Eugene Juwah, said: “There is nothing in our law that empowers NCC to share money which is paid as a penalty.” Although NCC can compel networks to offer free airtime as compensation to customers, he said this was less of a burden than paying cash to the government.

Diamond Bank and Airtel partner NACC to boost Nigerian economy

iamond Bank Plc, Airtel and Mutual Benefits Assurance are partnering the National Association of Cooperative Consultants (NACC) in a new project to boost small-scale businesses in Nigeria. The pilot project, which is for registered and functioning cooperative societies, will kick off in Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Ogun, Kwara and Lagos states. Regional managers from Cooperative organisations learnt more about Cooperative Small Business Loans (COSBIC), free group calls and other benefits of the project at a recent forum. The speakers included NACC’s Chief Consultant, Ademola Akintola.

MTN Mobile Money now accepted for payment on Jumia in Ivory Coast

frica Internet Holding (AIH) has announced a partnership with operator MTN to offer new comprehensive services, which are both online and on mobile, to Jumia customers in Ivory Coast.

AIH will now be able to pay for their purchases with MTN’s Mobile Money, as well as access exclusive offers and discounts. Jumia said it is setting up a ‘Jumia Corner’ in MTN branches across the region to reach out to customers locally and assist them in making their online purchases.

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quality of service standards, and banned them from signing up new customers during March.

Econet Zimbabwe and Western Union to integrate systems

conet Wireless has entered into a commercial arrangement with Western Union that will enable people to send money from abroad to account holders of its mobile money transfer platform EcoCash. This means that EcoCash account holders will not need to physically visit Western Union branches to receive money sent through the global money transfer agency.

SECURITY NEWS CBN issues November deadline to banks on PCIDSS

he Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has issued a new circular which urges all commercial banks, switches and processors to be Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCIDSS) certified by November 30 or face sanctions.

The PCIDSS is a framework which is used to prevent, detect and appropriate security incidents in payment operations between banks. This framework helps banks to ensure the safe handling of a cardholder’s information at every step. The CBN circular, which was issued by the CBN Banking and Payments System Department in Lagos on April 25, said the bank would “invoke appropriate sanctions for non-compliance with the provision of the circular”. The bank has found out, from a pre-certification assessment, that some banks have yet to comply with the mode.

BVN begins in Lagos branches next month

anks will begin to issue Bank Verification Numbers (BVN) next month to customers in 1000 branches across Lagos. The news was revealed by Isaac Okoroa, Assistant Director and Head of External Communications Division, CBN, who said: “The process has been extended to 42 of the 48 branches designated in the pilot phase. By the end of May, we will begin the public rollout here in Lagos with 1000 branches.” BVN, which is based on the biometric identity of customers, was launched on February 14 with a pilot phase, which involved bank staff in 48 branches across the country. Mr. Oluseyi Adenmosun, Head of the Biometric Project, Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS), said: “We want to be able to identify account holders across the industry.”

Microsoft warns about Explorer security risk

newly discovered security hole in Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, the default Web browser for many users, could prove a major problem for those still running Windows XP. Microsoft has warned about a coding flaw affecting versions 6 through 11 of its flagship browser, which would allow hackers to have the same level of access on a network computer as the official user. The company said it was aware of “limited, targeted attacks” that attempt to exploit the flaw, but didn’t elaborate. It stopped supporting XP with security updates on April 8.

Many businesses still unprepared for online security incidents At least 77% of companies have suffered an incident in the last two years, but only 38% of businesses have an incident response plan, according to a new study sponsored by Arbor Networks, a leading provider of DDoS and advanced threat protection solutions. The Economist Intelligence Unit report, entitled ‘Cyber incident response: Are business leaders ready?’, gauges the level of corporate preparedness for datarelated incidents around the world. It found a lack of understanding of potential threats and reveals that only a third of businesses share information about incidents with other organisations to spread good practice.

Standard Bank supports efforts to combat money laundering

tandard Bank Namibia says it is supporting local and global efforts to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorist activities because these are financial crimes with economic effects that can threaten the stability of a country’s financial sector. The bank’s Manager of Compliance, Amon Ngavetene, believes local and international efforts are essential to essential to protect the integrity of markets, as well as the global financial framework.

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Every transaction tells a story ™

And no two stories are the same That’s why banks and payment processors rely on INETCO Insight® to provide the end-to-end visibility you need to ensure every ATM, mobile, online banking and POS transaction is complete — no matter how complex or distributed your banking system may be.

INETCO Insight® The PREFERRED transaction monitoring software for financial institutions worldwide.

Your evaluation of INETCO Insight for monitoring ATM, mobile banking, online banking, POS and other customer transactions STARTS HERE: insight@inetco.com

As our banking IT infrastructure grows, so does the complexity of monitoring transactions. INETCO Insight is envisioned to be our notso-secret weapon when it comes to real-time transaction slowdown troubleshooting, improving problem isolation times by up to 75% which helps us manage costs, and, more importantly, maintain the high level of service our customers have come to expect.” JASON DE SWARDT, HEAD OF NEDBANKS’S NEW PAYMENT SERVICES HUB

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INSIGHT

Driving data protection costs down

Negotiating with data management vendors is becoming increasing important. Clifford Brody gives expert advice on how to reduce the risks, protect your bank and forge lasting partnerships.

anks today struggle with generating and storing greater and greater volumes of data, while cloud computing and other new technologies have raised the bar on protecting that data. With a bank’s entire business operation and reputation in the marketplace at risk, Data Management Vendors have become increasingly important. In order to reduce risk and cost, while still receiving a quality service, banks must select a reliable, experienced vendor and negotiate an agreement that protects them well into the future.

DATA MANAGEMENT VENDOR AGREEMENTS VARY WIDELY The Data Management Industry is still so young that there are no real pricing standards. Data Management Vendors are

businessmen and will attempt to negotiate a deal that yields them the most money for doing the least amount of work. The bank’s job is the opposite. This can result in one bank paying over ten times more than another similar bank for the same services from the same vendor!

KEY AREAS IN NEGOTIATION With so much riding on the outcome, when negotiating a contract with your Data Management Vendor, there are four key areas to consider: 1. Pricing 2. Services 3. Accountability and Remedies 4. Severability

Pricing Cost is, of course, your number one consideration when it comes to pricing. In order to keep the price in check, always use an RFP in the selection process because competition drives down cost. Other aspects of pricing to consider are: •• Timing – never pay vendors fully before they perform their services. If they offer discounts for early payment, do not accept them. The only way to manage your vendors is to make certain that you have the money they want, as they will be much more responsive. •• Pricing Model – another consideration is flat fee versus pay-as-you-go plans. Flat fees offer the security of knowing how much you will be spending, while variable plans may be less

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expensive in the long run. •• Term – the duration of the agreement is also important. Vendors will typically offer you a better price if you commit to a longer term. Services When defining the scope of services and deliverables, make absolutely certain that the descriptions

where the parties involved share the same goals. Make your Data Management Vendors accountable by tying their payments or bonuses to performance. Conversely, make certain that Service Level Agreements are in place that will provide true remedies for non- performance and ensure that these remedies will be as significant to them, as the impact of non- performance is to the bank. Severability The final remedy that must be clearly delineated in any contract is “severability” – how can you get out of a contract if the vendor is not living up to expectations. As difficult and costly as it is to change vendors, being stuck with a vendor that is not

doing its job is even worse. A vendor that knows its contract is dependent on good performance is more likely to make every effort to deliver than one who knows they are getting paid for the next 3 years, no matter what.

CONCLUSION When negotiating a contract with a Data Management Vendor, the difference between negotiating well and not negotiating well may be millions of dollars and could expose the bank to tremendous risk. So make certain that you protect yourself and your bank by following these simple guidelines and create a partnership with your Data Management Vendors that will serve you well for years to come.

About the Author

are concrete and encompass all the services and deliverables you expect. Make certain that the terms include a schedule of implementation and turnaround times. You should also include who will actually be doing the work, where it will be done, how it will be managed and how project communication will be handled.

Clifford Brody is CEO and Founder of Global Bankers Institute (http://www.globalbankersinstitute.com). Prior to co-founding Global Bankers Institute, Cliff was CEO of The Edcomm Group Banker’s Academy and before that he spearheaded the establishment of the “Peopleware” practice at Arthur Andersen & Co (now Accenture). With the knowledge and experience born of 30 years in the financial services industry serving over 2000 clients, Cliff brings an unparalleled vision to the issues facing banks today. You may contact him at cliff.brody@globalbankersinstitute. com and on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/cliffbrody/

Accountability and Remedies The best partnerships are ones

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EXECUTIVE INTERVIEW

The Skye’s the limit Technology Banker speak to Skye Bank CIO, Richard Amafonye, about the exciting challenges and technological opportunities Skye Bank faces in the years ahead, including its Cloud strategy, product advantage and plans to harness big data.

BRIEFLY GIVE US AN OVERVIEW OF SKYE BANK, ITS VISION AND ITS COVERAGE IN AFRICA? Skye Bank is a synergy of five legacy banks and has evolved into one of the leading financial institutions in Nigeria, following our very seamless consolidation exercise in 2006. It is a full service International Bank with diversified product base and a national network of over 200 branches and more than 800 ATMs, which cover the major business locations of Nigeria in the six geo-political zones of the country. We have three banking subsidiaries in Sierra Leone, the Gambia and Guinea, which are all located in the West African sub-region. Our vision is “to be a leading and first

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class commercial bank” and our mission is to distinguish our bank “through excellent service quality steeped in the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT)”.

WHAT DIFFERENTIATES SKYE BANK FROM ITS COMPETITORS, PARTICULARLY FROM THE AFRICAN DIASPORA CUSTOMER’S POINT OF VIEW? In keeping with our Vision and Mission, enhanced customer experience and service excellence, underpinned by Value Innovation, remains one of our greatest assets. We also have our Skye Global Account, which is an all-in-one account specifically designed for Nigerians living abroad, which features a savings

and current account. The Skye Global account comprises of both naira and domiciliary accounts and could serve as an investment account, as well as providing other proxy management services, such as asset and shares acquisition, project execution, property development, funds management and disbursement services. The product also provides the option for deposit placement at competitive rates.

HOW IS SKYE BANK HARNESSING THE BIG DATA ACROSS ALL CHANNEL SOURCES, INCLUDING SOCIAL MEDIA? In Skye, we have always believed that operational excellence is one of the

keys to achieving and sustaining profitable growth. This, in turn, depends on how we grasp and deliver on two strategy fundamentals, which are product advantage and production advantage. Big data and analytics offer veritable tools to exploit information and to build insights into the requirements of customers, improve employee productivity and drive business growth. Relying on empirical evidence, rather than hunches, to drive real-time decisions is now the way to go. As you know, information has no intrinsic value in itself. Its value derives from how it impacts on decision behaviour. More than ever before, business leaders now need access to information that is sufficiently accurate enough to be relied upon, which is timely, relevant and presented in the right format, volume and frequency. On the social media frontier, we have invested considerably to drive forward brand engagement.

It is still early days, some of these initiatives will take some time to crystallise, but the good news is that the journey has now begun and we have a very clear way forward.

DOES THE GROWTH IN MOBILE TRANSACTIONS POSE PARTICULAR CHALLENGES FOR SKYE BANK? Certainly, it does. It is a universal headache which, like most things, provides threats, as well as opportunities. One of the major threats I see is that market boundaries are shifting. Like Bill Gates asserted many years ago, “banking is necessary, but banks are not “. New operators in the payment landscape are gradually gaining a foothold and fishing in ponds that previously were the preserve of banks. Security is also a major cause for concern.

THE CLOUD IS ABOUT HOW BUSINESS CAN ADJUST TO CHANGE – WHETHER IT IS A NEW BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY, NEW COMPETITOR OR NEW

STRATEGY – WITH SPEED. WHAT IS THE SKYE BANK CLOUD STRATEGY? Your description of the Cloud is apt. In my view, it is a new name for an old phenomenon, which I call “Just-In-Time”. At Skye, we have a clear roadmap to adopting the Cloud, starting first with a Private Cloud and then taking advantage of public offerings. We are currently implementing an open standards-based cloud technology, which is built around a flexible and dynamic converged infrastructure. We are leveraging Dell’s “build a cloud” offering. This is built on Dell’s converged infrastructure on the Microsoft stack. Our focus is not on the technology but on what we want to achieve, which is to build an integrated, agile, scalable IT platform, in order to meet the demands of the business.

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INFOGRAPHIC

Big Data, Big Insights Dealing with big data can present vast business opportunities for banks in Africa, as well as huge security challenges. Tichaona Zororo reports.

ig data can be very powerful and have both positive and negative impacts on an enterprise. Its significant benefits, which include improved decision making, better customer services, products getting to market faster and increased profits, are currently contributing to the explosion of big data implementation across enterprises of all sizes. However, privacy breaches of big data can result in costly legal consequences for businesses. According to the global IT association, ISACA, â&#x20AC;&#x153;big data represents a trend in technology that is leading the way to a new approach in understanding the world and making business decisionsâ&#x20AC;?.

FIGHTING BANK FRAUD

Banking institutions are increasingly

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relying on big data to formulate their product portfolio, detect fraud and predict attacks, based on trends that are targeting the industry. Banks can use big data to track factors, such as how often a user typically accesses an account from a mobile device or PC, how quickly they type in a username and password, and the geographic location they most often use to access an account. This can be very useful in formulating a banking product portfolio, eliminating costly processes and improving fraud detection. Banks can also use their big data abilities to detect cross-channel schemes by reviewing data across numerous banking platforms, rather than just monitoring them in isolation. The value of using big data to help real-time prevention or detection of fraud is becoming clearer, and it

is helping African banks to make a business case for predictive analysis. Investment in big data analytics is compelling from a business standpoint because it leverages the otherwise latent or unused resource of alreadycollected data.

WHAT IS BIG DATA?

Also known as predictive analytics, big data is the term for large, varied and rapidly growing types of information assets that require new forms of processing to enable enhanced decision making, insight discovery and process optimisation. It is high volume (made up of terabytes, petabytes or zetabytes of information), high velocity (which refers to the speed data which is created) and/or high variety. ISACA defines big data as, â&#x20AC;&#x153;data sets

that are too large or too fast- changing to be analysed using traditional relational or multidimensional database techniques or conventional software tools to capture, manage and process the data at a reasonable elapsed time”. There is also big data analytics, which is the process of examining big data by applying emerging statistical models and analytics techniques to derive conclusions that are beneficial to business.

SEVEN STEPS TO TACKLE SECURITY CHALLENGES

There is no doubt that dealing with big data can present vast banking business opportunities, but it can also present huge security challenges. There are a number of steps and approaches that banks can adopt to improve big data security, reduce risk, and improve compliance and leverage on big data benefits.

Develop a business case for big data. Each bank needs to understand its rationale for adopting big data, the anticipated return that it hopes to achieve and the competitive impact this will have on the business. The business case should be periodically reviewed to ensure that big data initiatives and programmes continue to support, sustain and extend the business strategy and objectives of the bank.

Define and establish principles, policies, processes, procedures and frameworks to support the achievement of benefits realisation, resource and risk optimisation, business strategy, as well as objectives, through big data. Big data is an enormous opportunity for banks in Africa to create business value, but without comprehensive principles, policies and frameworks, it can generate huge risks. Big data therefore needs a governance framework that will ensure trustworthy data practices. Without this proper governance, the same data that can be used to create value, can also be used to create intrusive and damaging outcomes and destructive decision making.

As a result, big data procedures should provide data identity, access management and governance to ensure that unauthorised staff cannot access sensitive data, such as customer account details, and avoid data actions that create trends and get exploited by rivals, such as information leakages. One area can also be anonymous of the data to ensure compliance with data privacy regulations.

Banks need to identify and use reliable sources of big data, as well as proper tools to verify the authenticity of data. This should be done without exposing the enterprise to legal and regulatory battles on money laundering and privacy of information. Once reliable sources have been identified, banks need to protect big data sources, processes and decisions from theft and corruption.

Establish and constantly review big data management and governance structures and skills to ensure privacy and security. Banks should also engage the right people to analyse the data, such as experienced data scientists, chief data officers and strategic data managers.

Obtain and use the right big data tools to store data, as well as analyse and retain it in compliance with the rules and regulations, and secure big data results and decisions. These tools in Africa are still maturing. Banks can engage mature big data tools for big data analysis.

Relate each big data decision to the business strategy and objectives. It is important to simulate the decisions and both record and understand the consequences, so that one can use that information to improve the big data business case, governance and management, sources, analysis, security and decision making.

Exploit the insights from big data and build a sustainable competitive advantage. Banks can now use big data to anticipate their future banking needs, in addition to providing insights on current products

and customer requirements.

INCREASING DATA SECURITY

Banks can further ensure data security by performing the following data governance and management procedures:

•• Data inventory, categorisation and classification to identify all of the sensitive data •• Ensuring that sensitive data is identified and secured •• Demonstrating compliance with all applicable laws and regulations •• Proactively monitoring the data and IT environment •• Reacting and responding faster to data or privacy breaches with incident management. Big data in Africa is still in its infancy. Whilst there are vast volumes of structured and unstructured of data available and amazing speed, very few banks are using the information for business strategy purposes. The main challenges are a lack of understanding and buy-in from senior executives and the non-availability of big data skills and tools in Africa. Most banks tend to be more preoccupied with their dayto-day business, than spending time analysing extensively huge amounts of data, which do not appear to provide tangible value to them.

Tichaona Zororo, CIA, CRMA, CISA, CISM, CRISC, CGEIT, is the vice-president of the ISACA South Africa Chapter and IT advisory and assurance executive director at EGIT | Enterprise Governance of IT (Pty) Ltd. He is also a COBIT accredited trainer. He holds a B.Sc. Honours in Information Systems (MSU), a Postgraduate Diploma in Computer Auditing (Wits) and several certificates in Business and IT.

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INDUSTRY LEADERSHIP

Pioneering initiative empowers African entrepreneurs CWG Group CEO, Austin Okere, writes about the importance of an innovative social impact investment initiative that will help MSMEs to access credit, empower African entrepreneurs and create thousands more jobs.

f you could close your eyes and imagine the addition of 17 million jobs to the Nigerian economy, and then imagine the mind-boggling socio-economic effects that this could bring about, you might not want to open them again. According to the Nigerian Population Commission (NPC), Nigeria’s unemployment rate rose to 23.9% in 2011, adding 2.1m more unemployed people to the jobless pool, resulting in a total of 16m without jobs. With millions entering the labour market every year, this youthful population could bring a democratic dividend or constitute a source of social unrest, depending on whether or not they can find jobs.

THE FREEDOM TO DREAM

There are about 17.7m Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria and if we could help them to build sufficient capacity to employ one more person, we would create 17.7m additional jobs, absorbing all of our 16m unemployed youths, with a generous surplus. While this may seem far-fetched, it is precisely what CWG 2.0 is all about; the freedom to dream

and the passion to execute. CWG 2.0 defines the future direction of the Computer Warehouse Group and has created a social impact investment initiative that aims to empower the African entrepreneur. As our vision is to become the number one IT Utility enabler in Africa, we have developed a product tagged CWG-SMERP. This is a vertically modular Enterprise Resource Planning system for MSMEs, which can be used on a subscription by hotels, hospitals, spare parts dealers, farmers, et al.

basis. We will use a franchise model to enable smaller IT firms and consultancies to assist the MSMEs as business support organisations, and so spur a secondary growth in IT MSMEs to create thousands more jobs.

STRONG FOUNDATIONS

By refocusing our business into a subscription-based model, we have created a more sustaining strategy, which will help to create jobs by empowering entrepreneurs. This, in essence, defines the new CWG PLC, which we have christened CWG 2.0. The listing of our shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange clearly marks the next phase of our company, as CWG is now the highest capitalised security in the ICT sector of the exchange, lifting the NSE by about N14b. The future of our company indeed looks very bright. As always, our best is yet to come…

Nigeria’s 17.7 million MSMEs could become the employment lifeblood of our economy, but without accurate business records and accounts, they cannot access credit from banks or financial organisations and grow their business aggressively. CWG-SMERP can provide these organisations with a strong foundation for growth and sustainability, as well as the opportunity to access a bigger market through the internet. This will make it cheaper for them to grow their enterprises by using ICT, since payments are only on a subscription

LANDMARK YEAR

2013 was a landmark year for CWG PLC, as we consolidated our leadership position in the ICT sector with a record turnover of $130m (N20.8b) and are set to become the number one IT Utility enabler by December 2015.

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REGULATONS & COMPLIANCE

Time for Change on Governance

The time is right for African banks and regulators to act on operational risk management, improve corporate governance and adopt best industry practice. Senior banker Raj Singh reports.

perational risk is inherent in all banking products, activities, processes and systems, and the effective management of operational risk has always been a fundamental element of a bank’s risk management program. The Basel committee defines operational risk as the “risk of loss resulting from inadequate or failed internal processes, people and systems or from external events”. It is driven primarily by “non-normal” operational failures, particularly conscious violations of professional or moral standards and excessive risk taking, such as sales practice violations and unauthorised trading activities.

TWO SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT

The management of operational risk includes identification, assessment, monitoring and control/mitigation of these risks. When it comes to operational risk management, there are two schools of thought – traditional and modern. Traditional

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operational risk is the day-to-day management of current operational failures, such as loss prevention through tactical intervention, whereas modern operational risk management deals with the optimisation of risk reward, risk control and risk transfer in the context of cost benefit analysis. In traditional operational risk management, “risk is the possibility that an event will occur and adversely impact the achievement of the entity’s mission or business objective”. So the typical measuring approach is, Risk = Probability X Loss (Impact). However, in modern operational risk management, “risk is a measure of exposure to loss at level of uncertainty”. The measuring formula is therefore: Risk = Probability X and impact is referred to as the expected loss. The key here is to understand the types of operational risk that exist and how they impact on corporate governance. Broad types of operational risk may be classified in to

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the following categories: People Risk, Process Risk, Governance Risk, Business operation Risk, Environmental Risk and IT Risk.

DEADLY CONSEQUENCES

You may well ask, why do we need to manage operational risk? The answer is simple. If we didn’t the consequences could be fatal for an organisation. To put is bluntly, operational risk can kill a financial institution. Credit and market risks are well known, understood and tend to be isolated in specific areas of the business. As a result, they are only likely to wound an organisation. In contrast, operational risk is complex, dynamic and pervasive, hiding in the wings of any business, just waiting to surface. It is therefore very important that corporate governance supports the modern operational risk framework, whether it is regulatory and supervisory environment, or through self-regulatory corporate governance.

First and foremost, the guiding principles need to agree with internationally accepted principles and develop the requisite human and institutional capacity to implement good corporate governance at all levels in the organisation. Banks are institutions or organisations whose job it is to handle other people’s money. There is always a high degree of oversight needed in banking because of deposit protection. In the African banking landscape, corporate governance is so stretched it is distressed and cannot cope with the demands being placed on it. Investor pressures are fierce, leading many banks to undertake risks that are simply not in the organisation’s best long-term interests.

LACK OF EXPERTS

Non-executive oversight is stretched and directors only have a limited amount of time to devote to the organisation, especially as they have almost unlimited responsibilities.

There is also a worrying lack of professional experts at board level. In addition, there is plenty of evidence that external audit is stretched, due to the huge amount of reliance placed on it, and internal audit is struggling, largely because many internal auditors are not given sufficient regard. As the effective management of operational risk has always been a fundamental element of a bank’s risk management program, sound operational risk management is a reflection of the board’s and senior management’s effectiveness in administering its portfolio of products, activities, processes and systems. The corporate governance framework and regulation is key in this regard, with respect to both disclosure and transparency. Apart from the regulations, sound internal governance forms the foundation of an effective operational risk management framework. Although internal governance issues related to the management of operational risk are not unlike those encountered in the management of credit or market risk operational risk management, challenges may differ from those in other risk areas. In industry practice, the first line of defence is business line management. This means that sound operational risk governance will recognise that business line management is responsible for identifying and managing the risks inherent in the products, activities, processes and systems for which it is accountable. By virtue of the relationship that exists between a bank and its stakeholders, the stakeholders have a duty to ensure that the bank is managed well. They must create and adopt adequate corporate governance framework to remain transparent and exert influence in all areas of the health of a bank. Governance takes a back seat It was found, when a recent governance issue impacted on a large African bank, that staff did not make

the time to re-examine the internal and operational issues relating to governance. Instead, they continued to focus only on growth and expansion and it soon became very clear that the expansion program preoccupied everything. In contrast, internal control, operational risk and all elements of governance had all taken a back seat. Operational risk management and governance was found wanting in the absence of a clear vision and strategy at the bank. There was inadequate transparency in recruitment procedures and various conflicts of interest. The board’s ability to manage its own activities, monitor management, evaluate performance and oversee ethical behavior was also cited as a weakness. In the African banking system, board of directors should take the lead in establishing a strong operational risk management culture, along with a corporate governance framework. The board of directors and senior management should establish a corporate culture that is guided by strong risk management and provides appropriate standards and incentives for professional and responsible behavior. It is the responsibility of the board to ensure that a strong operational risk management culture exists throughout the whole organisation and is supported by clear and transparent corporate governance. There is no doubt that banks with a strong culture of risk management and ethical business practices are less likely to experience potentially damaging operational risk events and are better placed to deal effectively with them when they do occur.

TRAINING REQUIRED

The actions of the board and senior management, along with an organisation’s policies, processes and systems, provide the foundation for a sound risk management culture. Senior management should therefore ensure that an appropriate level of operational risk training is available at

all levels throughout an organisation, and this should reflect the seniority, role and responsibilities of the individuals attending. The fundamental premise of sound risk management is that the board of directors and bank management understand both the nature and complexity of the risks that are inherent in the portfolio of bank products, services and activities. This is particularly important for operational risk, as it is inherent in all business products, activities, processes and systems. The importance of resilience It is important that banks have business resiliency and continuity plans in place to ensure they are able to operate on an ongoing basis and limit losses, even if business is severely disrupted and they cannot fulfill some or all of their business obligations. Incidents that damage the bank’s facilities, telecommunication or information technology infrastructures, or a pandemic event that affects human resources, can result in significant financial losses, as well as broader disruptions to the financial system. A bank should establish business continuity plans that are commensurate with the nature, size and complexity of its operations, in order to be resilient against this kind of risk. Such plans should take into account the various scenarios that could make the bank vulnerable. To conclude, there is a huge opportunity for banks and financial institutions in the African continent to work on operational risk and corporate governance. I believe the time is now ripe for banks and regulators across the continent to act on operational risk management and corporate governance and adopt best industry practices, which will bring them on a par with their counterparts in other parts of the world.

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Mobile Money Transfer VTN VCASH and Western Union Mobile Money Transfer service with Western Union and VTN is an easy, fast and convenient way for VTN customers in Nigeria to receive money from abroad on their VCASH account.

In a few quick steps, a Western Union® Money Transfer can be added into a VTN VCASH account in Nigeria. 1 Western Union sender makes a money transfer at a Western Union® Agent location or online on a Western Union transactional website (where available). 2 Sender provides the VTN receiver the Western Union MTCN tracking number. 3 With the MTCN number, the VCASH customer can follow the Western Union menu prompts on their VTN phone to add the funds directly* onto their VCASH account! 4 The VCASH customer will enter their PIN, for user authentication. Additional information about the transaction may also be requested. (See diagram below) A 1. Send Money 2. Western Union 3. Check Balance 4. Mobile Top-up 5. Pay Bill Select

Western Union

1. Pick-up money

Western Union Please enter 10-digit Western Union MTCN: _ (3 unsuccessful attempts will result in account blocking)

Select

Cancel

Select

Cancel

Western Union

Please enter the amount you are expecting to receive: _ (3 unsuccessful attempts will result in account blocking)

Select

Cancel

Western Union

Please enter your PIN to continue: _

Pick-up Confirmation: Western Union has deposited XXXXX into your account No. 00045XXX

Select

Cancel

5 The VCASH customer will receive an SMS notification confirming the deposit of funds into VCASH.

If the Western Union sender provides their mobile number on the Western Union Send Form, they will also receive a text message when the funds are delivered1.

Did you know? VCASH consumers in Nigeria can use funds in their VCASH account as determined by VTN, including: • Pay bills • Withdraw cash • Purchase airtime • Buy goods and services For more information, visit virtualterminalnetwork.com or WesternUnionMobile.com Available through:

Dr Charles Kimei, Chief Executive Officer, CRDB

* Funds will be paid to receiver’s VTN VCASH account provider for credit to account tied to receiver’s mobile number. Additional third- party charges may apply, including SMS and account over-limit and cash-out fees. Funds availability subject to terms and conditions of service. See Send Form for Restrictions. ** Service options are determined by the mobile phone service provider. 1 Standard Message and Data rates may apply. VTN, VCASH and the VTN logo are trademarks of Virtual Terminal Network. © 2013 Western Union Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

FEATURE

Banking on the Cloud The market for the Cloud is expected to skyrocket in the next few years, but African banks and financial institutions face a number of challenges that are currently blocking their uptake of this technology, writes Stanley Francis.

he Cloud is a secure and flexible technology that enables financial institutions to conduct and grow their business more efficiently. It can reduce IT operating costs, improve a bankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to attract and retain customers, increase their flexibility and expand their market share. The African banking industry is still apprehensive, however, about using cloud computing for a number of reasons, most of which surround security, data privacy and the requirements of governance and compliance regulations, both local and global. Despite these concerns, cloud computing is able to assist

banks in application testing and development, managing customer relations, human resources and financial management. It also saves massive amounts of time and enables them to act on information more quickly by providing the financial industry with increased flexibility and analytical capabilities. There is a strong belief that, by making enterprise-level banking systems and associated technologies available in the Cloud, SACCOs, community banks and microfinance institutions in Africa can gain access to modern core banking systems.

7 KEY BENEFITS OF MOVING TO THE CLOUD 1. Increased predictability 2. Faster time to market 3. Reduced operational overhead 4. Pre-configured environment 5. End to end support 6. Known performance envelope 7. Reduced risk Despite the many advantages of cloud computing, Africa faces a number of

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challenges that are currently blocking its uptake of this technology. These include traditional obstacles, such as data controls, vendor “lock-in” and sovereignty issues, as well as infrastructure and government policies, which both play a huge role.

LEGAL IMPACT Legislation, such as South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information (PPI) Act, is having an impact on any organisation that processes the personal information of third parties. According to Tammy Bortz, of Werksmans Attorneys, the Act means that any company moving to the Cloud will have to ensure that proper

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safeguards are in place first. They will then have to regularly verify and update these safeguards. The PPI prohibits the transfer of personal information to a foreign entity, unless the recipient is subject to a law or agreement that upholds similar information protection principles. This will affect organisations that investigate International Cloud Computing Service Providers. There are also genuine concerns surrounding privacy, confidentiality, data integrity and authentication requirements. The industry has

regulatory, legal and compliance issues, which influence the ability to move onto the Cloud with ease. For the majority of banks, there is a greater inclination to create their own private cloud rather than use an existing public one. While this is a more expensive option, it ensures higher levels of control and security across the operation.

FOCUS ON SECURITY In terms of security and data privacy, banks need to focus on creating the same levels of security that are currently assigned to various data profiles they use in their day-to‐day operations. This can be achieved

through a combination of private and public clouds. Significant investments therefore need to be made in identity and access management to accompany this transition and organisational controls need to be incorporated within business process to safeguard against cloud security risks and proactively prevent access policy breaches. Many organisations take a pragmatic approach when moving their technology to the Cloud, and start with green field projects or applications that will benefit most from the flexibility and scalability of the technology. Here are some scenarios where cloud computing makes a difference: •• High performance computing workloads Spain’s sixth largest bank, Bankinter, has adopted the Amazon Web Services Cloud, which enables it to achieve a competitive advantage by running credit risk simulations to evaluate the financial health of its clients. By incorporating the Cloud, Bankinter has managed to reduce the average time for running these simulations from as long as 23 hours to just 20 minutes. The bank estimates that the hardware needed to achieve the same level of performance would have cost them 100 times more. • Cost savings The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has saved tens of millions of Australian dollars by using the Cloud for small workloads. This has been achieved by halving its storage costs, as well as most app testing and development costs. When the roll out is completed, the cost savings are expected to be hundreds of millions. • Agility The CBA is also gaining agility by rapidly reducing the time it takes to provide technology through using

cloud computing. With their previous infrastructure, it took up to eight weeks to stand up a new server and cost several thousand dollars. It now takes just eight minutes and 25 cents to do the same in the Cloud. This rapid reduction in procurement time is helping it to both roll out new initiatives and adapt to customer demand more rapidly. • Customer service The Pan-European Bank UNICREDIT, which has about 40 million customers and 9,500 branches in 22 countries, making it the largest Central and Eastern European banking network, is using cloud solutions for geospatial web and mobile applications. The result of this is the UNICREDIT Locator application, which helps customers to find the bank’s nearest offices, branches and ATMs. • Mobile banking South African technology company Entersekt works with Africa’s largest banks to help them take advantage of the Cloud. Its mobile applications help to improve security and allow users to authenticate individual transactions, such as online card purchases, online wire transfers and ATM withdrawals, by “accepting” transactions on their mobile phones. Entersekt’s system sends fully encrypted data from banks to the Cloud (which is able to handle massive amounts of mobiles connecting to its infrastructure). This helps the banks to cope with vast numbers of users connecting to their system during high transaction periods. The infrastructure is then able to scale back down again. As a result, financial institutions only pay for the technology they need, when they need it, and do not over-provision hardware to cope with seasonal peaks. By using this cloud-based system, banks have been able to give their customers a more secure and better retail banking experience, while also reducing online phishing fraud.

• Infrastructure Dutch retail bank Robeco Direct, which currently manages over €8 billion in assets, is another banking institution that uses the Cloud for their technology infrastructure. Their entire retail banking platform was recently moved to the Cloud, in order to streamline their technology platforms, increase the agility of their technology and lower costs. To achieve this it chose Ohpen’s ‘bank in the cloud’ software, which runs on top of Amazon Web Services (AWS), giving customers with a technology platform that provides a better performance. While cloud computing has obvious benefits, financial institutions need to ensure that their priorities for security and compliance are in line with those of their cloud infrastructure provider. It is paramount, for example, that financial institutions retain both the ownership and control of their content.

ASK FOR PROOF They should look for a cloud provider that will not reorganise their data and offers clients the ability to choose the geographic regions in which they locate their technology infrastructure, without moving it. This can be crucial in complying with data protection laws. The level of security provided is also crucial, so ask for proof of certifications and accreditations, such as ISO-27001, which was developed by the International Standards Organisation and is accepted by companies around the world. Cloud infrastructure providers should also undergo Service Organisation Controls 1, 2 and 3 (SOC 1, 2, 3) audits to ensure they comply with their own internal policies. Customers may also like to see certifications and accreditations for their particular industry, such as PCI DSS Level 1, which is applicable to the credit card payments industry.

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The Middle Eastâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest cards, payments and identification show This year we have put together an event that will inspire, innovate and educate the top players in the payments and identity industries. For the 14th year running, Cards & Payments will give you the big ideas to do better business in 2014. Speakers include:

Garry Lyons Chief Innovation Officer and Head of MasterCard Labs MasterCard

Megan Quinn Co-founder Net-a-Porter

2014 sponsors

Robert Willett Former CEO Best Buy and Al Futtaim Group Current Chairman Occa-Home, Eagle Eye Solutions and MetaPack

www.terrapinn.com/cme

EVENTS FOR YOUR DIARY

May - July 2014

06SAVE - 07 May £400 May 2014 MOBILE PAYMENTS AND VAS EUROPE, UK WHEN YOU REGISTER EARLY. UNIQUE DISCOUNT CODE INSIDE.

Mobile Payments 6 -7 LONDON Bringing the main players from all the top banks, MNOs and retailers - plus emerging disrupters of traditional financial markets. and VAS Europe 2014 th

Hilton Tower Bridge

Integrate data, security and a great value proposition into your mobile payments solution for a winning consumer experience Bringing together 150+ key players from across the mobile payments space to discuss, debate – and decide – the future of mobile payments •

Secure transactions: The latest on customer perception, where

•

Customer engagement: Learn how top brands and retailers use

to store the secure element and towing the line between usability, security, and biometrics mobile to better connect with their consumers - from marketing and loyalty - right through the path to purchase •

Unparalleled customer insight: Unlock the power of data from social, location and transactional data to better understand and communicate with your customer

•

Getting the technology right: Up-to-the-minute information on the technologies driving mobile payments today, and where the next disruptive innovation is coming from

•

Beyond payments: In depth insights into how non-financial industries including transport, retail and hotels are driving mobile payments

FOLLOWING ON FROM THE SUCCESS OF LAST YEAR’S MOBILE PAYMENT & VAS SHOW, PLUS THE MOBILE WALLET SUMMIT, OPEN MOBILE MEDIA BRINGS YOU • The BIGGEST and BEST Mobile Payments event in Europe • 150+ senior level attendees from Europe’s top banks, operators and retailers; ready to thrash out the future of mobile payments and help you navigate a successful path through this lucrative industry

13 PAYMENTS -14 May EXPERTS SPEAKING: RETAIL SHOW MIDDLE EAST, Dubai WORLD RENOWNED MOBILE

It equips and enables retailers to maximise on the big changes in retail industry as technology advances.

15 -16 May AFRICA FINANCIAL SERVICES INVESTMENT CONFERENCE, UK The objective of this conference is to increase investment into Africa’s financial services sector.

• Meet the entire mobile payments ecosystem - with so many players involved, this event provides you with crucial insight into your competition and prospective partners • 25+ expert speakers debate the most important issues so that you can find out what the industry really thinks • 20+ hours dedicated networking time which includes roundtable discussions, workshops and a pre-conference meeting organiser, so you can meet the industry’s leading decision makers • 1:1 time with experts: Cost-free consultancy from people who can help turn your strategies from theory to reality • Innovation Zone: Your chance to hear from the innovators and trailblazers in this space; an entire session dedicated to the companies enabling mobile payments today

VISIT

20 - 21 May MNOs, Banks, SatCom AFRICA, South Africa Look inside to see Retailers, who will attend

the most high level Payment With an exhibition packed with innovations, a series of inspiring keynotes and Providers event in mobile this year! and More... round tables,payments Telcos, ISP’s and Broadcasters will come away from the event with the ideas and relationships they need to develop their business.

www.openmobilemedia.com/mobile-payments-europe to learn more

20 - 22 May MOBILE MONEY AND DIGITAL PAYMENTS AFRICA, South Africa

What does the Africa region need to do to overcome the more recent hurdles such as regulation and interoperability?

03 - 04 June EUROPEAN ATMS 2014, UK

The event offers industry suppliers the opportunity to showcase their products and services and to network with senior decision makers from banks and independent ATM deployers.

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05 - 06 June 2014 BANKING ON INNOVATION, Spain

Financial services institutions are facing pressure both from the increasing use of digital technologies and changes in customer behavior and expectations.

10 - 11 June 2014 CLOUD WORLD FORUM AFRICA 2014, South Africa

Bringing together the whole African Enterprise ICT ecosystem including leading African enterprises and SMBs, Telco players, service providers and globally established IT vendors.

17 - 18 June 2014 IT INFRASTRUCTURE & BROADBAND SUMMIT 2014, South Africa

Providing Definitive Analysis on IT infrastructure & Operational Technologies and Trends. With mobile, cloud and big data technologies converging and creating an explosion of information access and usage, IT leaders are having to face these challenges head on.

01 - 03 July BIG DATA AND ANALYTICS FOR FINANCIAL SERVICES, UK

The financial services industry thrives on data. Customer data, investment data, market data, correspondence, social media data, influx of data is endless.

09 - 10 July 2014 AITEC BANKING & MOBILE MONEY WEST AFRICA ACCRA 2014, Ghana The event will address the key issues faced by the regionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s increasingly dynamic financial services sector.

15 - 16 July 2014 AITEC BANKING & MOBILE MONEY WEST AFRICA LAGOS 2014, Nigeria

African banks have a great challenge in overcoming their heritage of colonial banking, which was designed to cater primarily for government, corporate and high-worth individuals.

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PREMIUM VENDORS DIRECTORY

Computer Warehouse Group offer integrated ICT solutions that add value to the operations of diverse clientele, using highly skilled and well motivated workforce. CWG work with best-inclass partners and technologies from all over the world.

Fiserv, Inc., a leading global provider of information management and electronic commerce systems for the financial services industry, providing integrated technology and services that create value and results for our clients.

Website: http://www.cwlgroup.com

Website: http://www.fiserv.com/index. htm Website: http://www.grgbanking.com/ en/index.asp

Global Bankers Institute is a Training, Communication and Consulting Firm dedicated to serving the financial services community. It provides modern training without sacrificing the principles on which todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s banks were built.

Infosys is a global leader in consulting, technology and outsourcing solutions, helping enterprises transform and thrive in a changing world in areas such as in mobility, sustainability, big data and cloud computing.

Website: http://www.globalbankersin- Website: http://www.infosys.com/ stitute.com/index.php pages/index.aspx

GRGBanking, a leading provider of currency recognition and cash processing solutions in the global market with great potential and rapid development with comprehensive solutions widely used in Finance, Telecom, CIT, Railway and Retail sectors.

Entersekt is an innovator in transaction authentication and introducing an isolated communication channel between phone and financial institution that avoids reliance on the open Internet for user and transaction verification. Website: http://www.entersekt.com/

INETCO and our global partner community provide business transaction management, communication gateway solutions, consulting and implementation services for the electronic processing and financial payments industry.

VCASH allows you to transfer and receive money locally and through Western Union using your phone or online, plus much more. VCASH is fully licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria to deploy mobile payment services in Nigeria.

SatADSL offers corporate internet access by satellite, with flexible subscriptions, state-of-the-art equipment and attractive price-setting with a set of tools which allow Distributors, Corporate and Individual users to monitor the terminals they operate.

Website: http://www.inetco.com/

Website: https://www.virtualterminalnetwork.com/Home/

Website: http://www.satadsl.net/

Your business not listed here? Get brand awareness and Win new business with Technology Banker Premium Pages Contact Jenny Howard on: +44 (0) 208 528 1536 jenny@technologybanker.com

Human Capital Performance Improvement Audit Are you completely satisfied with the Return on Investment (ROI) from your current training? Are your training budgets driven by business goals and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)? Are you holding training vendors accountable for quantifiable business improvements? Based on over 25 years of providing the BEST! Training, Communication and Consulting Solutions to the banking industry worldwide, the leaders of Global Bankers Institute have designed the Human Capital Performance Improvement (HCPI) Audit. The HCPI Audit is the first-of-its-kind service to offer the following benefits: 1) Ongoing Performance Improvement Plan based on cascading Strategic and Operational Goals. 2) Comprehensive Training Plan with behavioral outcomes aligned to Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Key Performance Measures (KPMs) resulting in a concrete Return on Investment for all training. 3) Effective Training showing measurable benefits in Sales, Customer Satisfaction, Operations Productivity and Quality, Employee Motivation, Risk, and Compliance, as well as any other identified bank goal. 4) Efficient Use of Training Budget through improved curriculum priorities and vendor selection and negotiation. 5) Holding Training Vendors Accountable by making them partners in the HCPI Audit process and requiring that they accept responsibility for delivering measureable improvement through their programs. Please contact me to let us know how we may best serve you. Global Bankers Institute brings experience, innovation and value, providing the BEST! Training, Communication and Consulting solutions to the financial services industry.

Dr. Linda Eagle Founder and President Global Bankers Institute 245 Park Avenue New York, NY 10167 +1.212.579.5500 ext. 3106 +1.646.236.7538 (mobile) linda.eagle@globalbankersinstitute.com www.globalbankersinstitute.com

Global Bankers Institute

LEARN . SOURCE . NETWORK

ASIA’S PREMIER BANKING TECHNOLOGY EVENT IS BACK !

6TH ASIA’S PREMIER BANKING TECHNOLOGY EVENT

23 & 24 SEPTEMBER 2014

KUALA LUMPUR CONVENTION CENTRE www.banktechasia.com For more info please contact : Email : info@banktechasia.com Tel : +603 2170 1588 Web : www.banktechasia.com organised by :