IBM marks 50 years of presence in Sri Lanka, partners with Hatton
National Bank
As IBM (NYSE: IBM) marks its 50 year presence in Sri Lanka this year,
the global technology giant announced its partnership with Hatton
National Bank (HNB), a leading private sector bank in Sri Lanka. IBM
will support HNB with supply and installation of the SmartVista
solution, provided by BPC Banking Technologies Group, to help HNB scale
up their operations and minimize service disruptions, providing the
ability to launch new products, streamline revenue streams and enhance
overall customer experience.
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Sachin Seth, VP Geo Expansion, General
Business Service, IBM South Asia; Jonathan Alles, Deputy
CEO, HNB; Rajan Narayan, MD/APAC, BPC Banking Technologies;
Anatoly Loginov, Chairman, BPC Banking Technologies;
Rajendra Theagarajah Managing Director, CEO, Director, HNB;
Shanker Annaswamy, Regional General Manager, IBM India South
Asia; Ganesh Margabandhu, Vice President, General Business,
Geographic Expansion & Inside Sales, IBM India/South
Asia; Chrishan Fernando, Country General Manager, IBM Sri
Lanka; Sidath Wijerantne, CIO, Head of IT, HNB; P.
Sridharan, AGM, HNB at the event. |
“We have been in Sri Lanka since 1962, and in recent years we have
experienced growing demand for our solutions and services as businesses
and governments in the country turn to IT to transform operations and
enhance global competitiveness,” said Shanker Annaswamy, Regional
General Manager, IBM India/South Asia. “IBM is committed to the success
of its clients and has been instrumental in providing world-class
technology to the Banking and Financial clients in Sri Lanka. Our
solution implementation for Hatton National Bank will ensure that they
stay right ahead of competition and deliver services with utmost
efficiency to their customers.”
HNB is at the forefront of using advanced technologies to automate
processes and be part of a movement that IBM refers to as Smarter
Banking which uses intelligence to drive operational efficiencies,
customer centricity and better risk management. A “smarter bank”
anticipates client needs and delivers innovative products faster and
more consistently than the competition.
“With growing competition in the market, technology is essential in
helping us to differentiate and offer innovative products and services
to our customers. We have been engaging with IBM on strategic
initiatives and have obtained solutions across hardware, software and
services,” said Rajendra Theagarajah Managing Director/ CEO Hatton
National Bank.
“The SmartVista solution is engineered to be implemented rapidly -
speeding time to revenue for Hatton National Bank. Its visionary design
means that future changes can be easily accommodated; ensuring that HNB
will be able to capitalize on opportunities in the changing payments
landscape”, said Rajan S Narayan, Managing Director BPC Banking
Technologies.
This payment domain based initiative is in line with HNB's new three
year strategic plan which places high emphasis on IT as a key enabler
which will steer HNB to maintain its leadership position in the banking
landscape in Sri Lanka. IBM will be implementing this solution across
the delivery channels of HNB Bank and will undertake maintenance and
support of the solution over the next fiveyears.
IBM is also expanding its operations in line with the country's
continued rapid economic transformation; which includes increased demand
for its solutions and services in high growth cities like Hambantota.
“IBM is committed to Sri Lanka and can bring in its expertise and
value proposition to help industries and government grow. IBM's roadmap
for 2015 includes focus on analytics, next generation data centre and
cloud and smarter planet. We want to explore these opportunities in Sri
Lanka as well”, said Chrishan Fernando, Country General Manager, IBM Sri
Lanka
IBM's wide range of capabilities is helping the banking industry, as
it goes through interesting and challenging times with aggressive
expansion plans on one hand and the need to be innovative and be
different on the other hand. The Sri Lankan banking sector is being
driven by customer demands for additional services as they move towards
alternate banking channels such as mobile banking, internet banking, and
hence the need for advanced technology becomes significant.
IBM is working with over 15 Business Partners in Sri Lanka to
increase scale and customize its solutions in line with the local needs
of the market.
The IT industry in Sri Lanka has evolved considerably over the last
50 years. IBM is among the leading technology services companies to be
present in Sri Lanka for half a century, offering end-to-end services
and solutions in the field of Hardware, Software, Services and
Consulting.
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