IT for financial services

Challenger bank Fidor reaches 200,000 customers

Fintech trailblazer Fidor now has more than 200,000 people using its banking services, but its CEO believes the fintech environment is getting tougher Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Danske Bank taps into the cognitive capabilities of IBM Watson

Danish bank is using IBM Watson as part of a major IT outsourcing deal Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

CW Nordics: Banks and startups increase collaboration

First they were deemed a threat, now they are potential partners. According to a new report by Nordic accelerator Fintech Mundi, banks are increasingly turning to financial technology (fintech) startups in their hunt for new ideas and market opportunities. Also in this issue, read now Baker Brun, a bakery company in Norway, is modernising its business processes through the latest technologies, and hear how Stockholm’s CIO is relishing the challenge of trying to make the Swedish capital the smartest city in the world. Continue Reading

UAE telco Du pushes SaaS adoption in Middle East

The Middle East looks set to see strong growth in software as a service and IT departments need to take a different approach Continue Reading

By

• Edward Banda

Barclays installs devices to monitor office use

Barclays bank has installed sensors connected to a cloud-based analytics platform to monitor and analyse office use Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

How banking technology has changed since the crash

In this week’s Computer Weekly, 10 years after the financial crash, we examine how banking technology has changed as a result of the economic crisis. We look at how GDPR, the EU’s new data protection laws, will affect your data storage strategies. And we ask if the cryptocurrency boom will remain a niche pursuit or whether the underlying technologies can bring benefits for enterprise IT. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Blockchain skills in high demand and jobs being swept up quickly

Job vacancies for people with blockchain skills are being filled in just seven days, on average, once they are advertised online Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

HSBC streamlines mortgages with Capita software

Bank is using software to improve its mortgage application processes and subsequently increase business through brokers Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

World's largest’ data center planned in Norway

Norway will soon have the biggest datacenter in the world which will harness the countries rich natural resources Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

Barclays ring-fencing project means downtime for customers

Many Barclays services will be unavailable this weekend as part of the bank's project to separate retail and investment operations Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

A decade of IT change since banking meltdown

With 10 years passing since Northern Rock had to be bailed out by the government, we look at how banking IT has changed since the financial crisis Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

BBVA tops Forrester mobile bank app chart

Spanish bank BBVA has the best mobile banking app in the world, according to Forrester Research Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

HSBC uses IBM to automate the processing of 100 million document pages

In another instance of banks adopting automation to lower costs and drive productivity, HSBC uses IBM analytics technology to cut down on its paper trail Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

China tests hack-proof quantum satellite communications

China has tested a prototype communication system that uses the principles of quantum mechanics to make it impossible for hackers to access Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Over 40% of IT professionals want another general election this year

A large proportion of IT workers in the UK want another general election this year in the hope it will stave off a hard brexit Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Nordic countries top digital nations ranking, but risk stalling

Nordic countries are leaders when it comes to digitisation – but they must continue to innovate to retain their position Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

WannaCry hero due in court on malware charges

The Briton who played a key role in halting the global WannaCry ransomware attacks is due in court in the US to face charges in connection with the Kronos banking Trojan Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Ransom DDoS attacks on the rise

The use of distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks to extort money from organisations is on the rise, warns security firm Kaspersky Lab Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

The fields of Athenry – how Apple’s datacentre plans are causing turmoil in a small Irish town

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we look into Apple’s controversial plans to build a huge datacentre in a small town in the west of Ireland, and hear the local arguments it has caused. We find out how the Met Office is managing the vast quantities of data it uses for weather forecasting. And we examine Google plans to bring artificial intelligence tools to the job recruitment market. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

AA Ireland turns to predictive analytics in fraud crackdown

Roadside assistance company invests in analytics software to fight fraud and introduce dynamic pricing after its split with the AA Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Nordea deploys AI to speed up customer service

Nordea is reaping the rewards of its fintech investments through its latest project to use artificial intelligence to support customers Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

TSB to introduce iris scan authentication in September 2017

TSB customers will soon be able to access their mobile bank accounts through iris scanning, which is regarded as the most secure biometric authentication available Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

The challenge of our era - digital transformation at Allianz

The insurance firm wants to become "digital by default" and its CIO explains the vital role DevOps and cloud play in its change programme Continue Reading

By

• Jacob Abboud, Allianz Insurance

London Stock Exchange uses IBM blockchain technology

The London Stock Exchange is testing out IBM's blockchain technology in a platform to help SME operations become more transparent Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

IBM claims breakthrough in mainframe encryption

IBM says its new mainframe ushers in a new era of data protection in response to a call to action from chief information security officers and security experts worldwide Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Encryption keys too predictable, warn security researchers

Encryption keys are not as random as most people think, which means encrypting data is often not as secure as it could be, according to security researchers Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

HPE and CSC merger wins confidence of Zurich

Zurich Insurance has demonstrated confidence in CSC's merger with HPE through a contract extension Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Visa encourages US businesses to go cashless with £500,000 in hard cash

Card giant offers small US businesses financial support to upgrade their payments technology if they agree to abandon cash Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

CW Middle East: How women can fill the tech skills gap

The growth of the IT sector continues to drive both innovation and employment in the Gulf, but women – as with all industries in the region – are under-represented in technology by significant margins, and could help to fill the tech skills gap. Also in this issue, read about growing threats in Saudi Arabia’s cyber sector, and how Dubai is becoming a world leader in smart city developments. Continue Reading

UK ranked as top 10 digital economy

The UK has been ranked among the top 10 nations in terms of digital capabilities Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Legal & General picks HomeServe’s IoT LeakBot to protect homeowners

Insurance firm partners with HomeServe to deploy its internet of things LeakBot technology and lower customer premiums Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cryptocurrencies: a niche pursuit?

Cryptocurrencies are on the rise, but why have digital currencies yet to reach the mainstream market? Continue Reading

By

• Angelica Mari

Experian admits mobile and online issues after system upgrade

Some customers of credit referencing company are having problems accessing a service they pay for following an IT upgrade and large customer migration to a new system Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

App-based banking continues its ascent in the UK

The number of people banking from their mobile phones is increasing as more services are made available through the channel Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Interview: Louise McCarthy and Valeria Della Rosa, EBRD

Two women are at the helm of the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development’s technology change programme – the bank’s first-ever digital transformation Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Swedish fintech Klarna gains full banking licence

Swedish online payments provider Klarna becomes one of “the largest banks in Europe” after being granted an EU-wide banking licence by the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

Voice biometrics still relatively unheard

Authentication system could help reduce UK fraud by making it hard for fraudsters to glean information from contact centres Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

The human apprentices behind robotic automation

IT apprentices are helping large businesses transform their back-office processes through software robots Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Finnish mobile operators opt-out from free EU roaming

Finnish mobile operators have been exempted from new European Union data roaming rules for now Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

Microchips implanted in hands could be in use for payments in 20 years

UK consumers are becoming more accepting that biometric authentication will become the norm for payments Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

HR technology essential to cutting-edge customer service, say big businesses

If you can’t get your internal HR systems right, the business will suffer – Jaguar Land Rover, Lufthansa and Russia’s Sberbank explain why Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Tips for buying hyper-converged systems

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we examine the growing market for hyper-converged infrastructure - combining processing, storage and networking into an integrated design - and assess the options available to IT leaders. We ask mature users of the cloud what’s next for their migration to off-premise systems. And we analyse how retail supply chains are developing to keep up with online and mobile shopping trends. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Challenger bank technology arm hires former ABN Amro IT executive as CIO

Bank and banking technology supplier Fidor hires an experienced banking CIO to support its international expansion Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Lloyds bank staff will move to IBM in outsourcing deal

About 1,500 IT staff at Lloyds Banking Group will join IBM as part of an IT infrastructure outsourcing agreement Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

HSBC launches global social network for businesses

HSBC Bank is helping its business customers connect with potential partners through a digital hub Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

IR35 reforms: HMRC denies claims that online tax status assessment tool returns unreliable results

HM Revenue & Customs hits back at research that suggests its IR35 online assessment tool is hindering public sector organisations in determining the tax status of off-payroll staff Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Taiwan’s OwlTing taps blockchain to improve food safety

The e-commerce company is using blockchain technology to provide consumers with greater transparency on food sources and production processes Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

CW Nordics: The trouble with connected things

In this issue, Finnish cyber security expert Mikko Hyppönen talks about security in the Nordics, Russia and the trouble with connected devices. Also read how Icelandic airline Wow Air averted disaster through the use of application performance monitoring software when it embarked on a major expansion. And find out how, since December 2015, anyone playing popular sandbox game Minecraft has been able to build their worlds on the actual map of Sweden. Continue Reading

Dubai financial services regulator launches temporary licence aimed at fintechs

Dubai is making it easier for financial technology companies to test out their ideas through a temporary licence Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

SAP aligns with Saudi Arabia’s IT transformation agenda

Global software giant SAP sees an opportunity for its wide portfolio in Saudi Arabia as the Middle Eastern country transforms Continue Reading

By

• Edward Banda

HSBC voice authentication tricked by twins

Twin brothers managed to trick HSBC’s voice recognition security system into giving account access to the wrong person Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Customer experience transformation at Macquarie bank brings legacy system retirement as a bonus

Australia’s Macquarie bank builds a data layer on top of legacy IT systems to transform customer experience Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Nordic region competes for datacentre dominance

The Nordic region is an attractive region for datacentres as demand for cloud services in the area grows Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

Blockchain economy on the horizon

Blockchain technologies will enable many new and disruptive business models than the internet itself, an expert predicts Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Highly skilled professionals at risk of being replaced by computers

Highly skilled jobs will be replaced by artificial intelligence by 2022, says Gartner Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Large UK businesses increasingly want CEOs to have IT background

More large businesses in the UK want a CEO that has a good understanding of IT Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Barclays launches £10m UK digital safety campaign

Barclays is to lead a £10m campaign against digital fraud as research reveals London, Bristol and Birmingham are scam hotspots, with young adults most at risk Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Mayor of London seeks chief digital officer

Capital’s first-ever chief digital officer will oversee the digital transformation of public services across London Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

UBS applies data protection for compliance and competitive advantage

Swiss bank UBS aims to get greater value out of investments in sensitive data protection systems by using its security capabilities as a differentiator Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

IT outsourcing going strong in the Nordics

IT outsourcing is popular among companies in the Nordic region, but the market is changing Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

UBS reduces legacy dependence with Microsoft Azure

Swiss bank begins its strategy of moving core systems into the cloud Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Nordea strikes partnership with Swedish mobile payment startup

Nordic bank links up with payments startup in its latest fintech project Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

UK trade department in New York to promote fintech firms

Group of financial technology firms taken to New York to show off their knowledge of regulatory compliance software Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Blockchain expands reach beyond finance

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we find out how blockchain, the distributed ledger technology behind bitcoin, is extending its reach beyond financial services into new industries such as healthcare, energy and education. We hear from software developers about the pros and cons of componentizing application software. And we examine what a recent court case shows about Oracle’s controversial software licensing policies. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Mastercard integrates biometric technology into cards

MasterCard tests out biometric technology embedded into payment cards, with further trials in Europe planned Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Banks suffer average of 85 attempted serious cyber attacks a year, and one-third are successful

Banks face daily cyber attacks, many of which succeed in stealing data, research finds Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Kone brings elevator maintenance online with IBM Watson and Salesforce

Lift manufacturer is using sensors and artificial intelligence to support its maintenance staff Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

CW Middle East: UAE faces IT recruitment challenge

In this issue, read how organisations in the UAE face a challenge to attract and retain top-quality CIOs and other key IT staff as the region seeks to tackle a technology skills gap. Also, Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority has revealed that plans to unveil passenger-flying cars are in the final stages, with the initiative expected to launch in July 2017. Meanwhile, the UAE is mirroring global trends by eagerly adopting virtual reality technology. Continue Reading

‘Can do’ attitude of DevOps teams is driving cloud-first strategies

The cloud-first strategies of businesses across sectors are maturing, with DevOps teams playing a leading role Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

IAM a core building block for GDPR compliance

Identity and access management is key to enabling organisations to become compliant with the GDPR, increase security and improve customer relationships, according to a senior analyst at KuppingerCole Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Outsourcing service left Scottrade Bank customer data exposed

Mistake by outsourcing service provider left the details of 20,000 Scottrade Bank customers vulnerable to theft Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Wonga warns 245,000 UK customers of cyber breach

Loan firm urges customers to be vigilant after data breach that may have exposed personal details, including some financial information Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Telenor launches IoT pilot in Norway

Telenor is opening up its IoT infrastructure in Norway to encourage students and entrepreneurs to develop IoT products and services Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Research fires warning at banks over branch closures

Traditional retail banks cannot rely on customer loyalty if service levels drop as a result of branch closures and staff cuts Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Interview: F-Secure’s Mikko Hyppönen on the Nordics, Russia and the internet of insecure things

Computer Weekly sat down with Finnish cyber security expert Mikko Hyppönen to talk about security in the Nordics, Russia and the trouble with connected devices Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

How to implement a low-power WAN to support the IoT

We explore the options and the implementation process for an LPWAN to support internet of things projects in the enterprise Continue Reading

By

• Rene Millman

Technology investments core to JP Morgan Chase success

US investment bank is reaping the benefits of its $9.5bn annual technology spend Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Australia’s Commonwealth Bank unveils data analytics platform

Free platform made available to bank’s customers at a time when only 34% of the country’s SMEs are making data-driven decisions Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Are ethical questions holding back AI in France?

France has been slow to create a strategy around the use of artificial intelligence, partly due to questions around ethics Continue Reading

By

• Pat Brans, Pat Brans Associates/Grenoble Ecole de Management

Threats grow in Saudi Arabia’s cyber sector

Saudi Arabia's wealth makes it an attractive target for cyber criminals, but what have been the recent trends in cyber crime? Continue Reading

By

• Triska Hamid

Singapore startup partners IBM to pilot blockchain technology

Invictus’ distributed ledger prototype will offer financing options for small and medium-sized enterprises Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Nearly 2,000 Lloyds bank IT jobs set to move to IBM in £1.3bn outsourcing deal

Around 2,000 IT staff at Lloyds Banking Group are set to transfer to IBM as part of a seven-year IT outsourcing deal, says union Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Paying ransomware attackers perpetuates attacks, says researcher

Continually evolving ransomware is among the threats organisations need to factor into their cyber defences in 2017, but only once they have taken care of the basics, says Kaspersky Lab researcher Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

CW Europe: Technology poses new risks to jobs, economies and society

Rapid advances in technology could have destabilising effects on employment and economic growth, and could exacerbate social unrest, the World Economic Forum (WEF) warned. Society’s failure to keep pace with technology change was a key risk under discussion at Davos in January. Continue Reading

Nordea brings social aspect to saving with fintech startup Spiff

Nordea launches a mobile savings app from Norwegian finanical technology company Spiff Continue Reading

By

• Eeva Haaramo

Deutsche Bank creates group-wide CIO role

New chief will drive technology transformation across the bank Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

3D printing gets serious in the Netherlands

3D projects abound in the Netherlands, with the technology being applied to canal bridges, bicycles, ship components and buildings Continue Reading

By

• Jasper Bakker

Businesses blame rivals for DDoS attacks

Industrial sabotage is considered to be the most likely reason behind a distributed denial of service attack, a study has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Santander bank to work with IBM developing mobile apps for staff

Santander bank wants to make its staff more productive through mobile apps, which it will create alongside IBM Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Cyber criminals net £8bn from financial services in 2016

Organised cyber fraud gangs are turning their attention to online lenders and emerging financial services, potentially netting £8bn in 2016, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Banking malware, DDoS, ransomware and CEO fraud top UK cyber threats

Businesses need to be aware of the value of their data, how that data is likely to be attacked, and how to defend against particular attacks, says leading UK cyber cop Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

CW Nordics: Top IT priorities for Nordic CIOs in 2017

In this first issue of CW Nordics in 2017 we take a look what CIOs in the region are expecting in the year ahead. We asked a select group of CIOs and analysts in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden what IT projects are at the top their priority lists. Also read about the Nordic region as a hotspot for IT startups, with Sweden punching above its weight in financial technology. And find out how board executives at healthcare company Elekta are analysing workforce data to make better strategic decisions. Continue Reading

HPE services and CSC to become DXC Technology

The merger between HP's services division and CSC will launch in April 2017 and is expected to save the companies billions Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

UAE bank builds predictive marketing models

Rakbank is using SAS analytics software to better understand its customers following a successful implementation of the supplier’s anti-money laundering software Continue Reading

By

• Edward Banda

HMRC rejects Gov.uk Verify

HM Revenue and Customs says it won’t be using Gov.uk Verify, which could cause difficulties for the government’s target of having 25 million Verify users by 2020 Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Cloud contracts are still a minefield

Cloud computing is maturing in the enterprise space, but the contracts that underpin cloud services have not evolved at the same pace Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Co-op Bank up for sale now legacy shift to IBM is complete

Bank put up for sale just days after it completed a multimillion-pound migration of its legacy banking platform into an IBM datacentre Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Santander introduces voice-controlled payments

Santander has taken its voice-controlled banking initiative to the next phase, with customers now able to make payments by voice Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

CW Benelux: Is there a Dutch digital delusion?

On government and business levels, the Netherlands aspires to be a digital leader in Europe, but it may be losing ground because of a lack of research and development investment. Also in this issue, IT decision makers based in the Benelux region are less confident than their European neighbours that IT budgets will increase in 2017, and Dutch bank ING, which used digital technology to reinvent itself after the financial crash, is about to reinvent itself again. Continue Reading

Middle East and North Africa public cloud spend to hit $2bn by 2020

Middle East-based organisations are turning to public cloud services, with software as a service driving a major year-on-year spending increase Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA