Banks are looking to modernize their technology platforms and operations. Choosing the right core banking system is a crucial decision that affects customer experience, product offerings, strategic business models, and operational efficiency. The capabilities offered by digital banking processing platforms (DBPPs) have advanced rapidly and gained traction with banks that recognize their role in enabling digital transformation, reducing operational costs, and meeting the demands of consumers, businesses, and regulators.
Driving The Digital Transformation Of The Bank
The Forrester Wave™: Digital Banking Processing Platforms, Q4 2024, evaluates the top DBPPs driving digital transformation in banking. Successful digital transformation involves more than just impressive front-end applications. It requires overhauling a complex web of technology infrastructure and tightly coupled systems. These DBPPs, built on modern banking architectures, help financial institutions streamline their systems and compete effectively in a digital-first, open, decentralized, and AI-driven banking environment.
This report provides an in-depth evaluation of the following top providers:
- 10x Banking Platform
- Finastra Essence
- FIS Modern Banking Platform
- Fiserv Finxact
- Infosys Finacle
- Intellect Design Arena IDC
- Mambu Core Banking
- Oracle Banking Suite
- SBS Banking Platform (formerly Sopra Banking Software)
- TCS BaNCS
- Temenos Core Banking
- Thought Machine Vault Core
Consumer, SMB, Corporate Banking, And More — On One Platform
Previously, we evaluated vendors separately for retail (consumer) and corporate banking platforms. Traditionally, banks deployed specialized core platforms for different business needs. But as vendors have enhanced their solutions and abstracted functionality from the core, the modern DBPP — headless, decoupled, and domain-driven — can now support all lines of business. This architecture allows banks to easily build or acquire needed business functionality or other specialty solutions. Retail, small- and medium-size business (SMB), corporate banking, and more can be managed from a single platform. This approach reduces IT overhead, simplifies procurement and integration, and allows banks to select the best solutions for any need.
Every DBPP Vendor Is A New-School Vendor Now
We have seen a significant shift in this marketplace: “New-school” systems weren’t previously mature enough to handle major banking requirements. Now we are seeing either robust core banking systems evolving into a modern DBPP offering or an enhanced “new-school” platform to support all lines of business. This has made the term “new-school vendor” obsolete.
Migrations Involve Some Complex Choices
Migrating to a DBPP from a legacy platform is not easy. The decision involves several complex considerations:
- The architecture. Banks will have to decide if they need comprehensive, out-of-the-box banking functionality immediately or if they want to move directly to a highly flexible platform that requires more developer and architect skill to integrate it with existing capabilities and third-party solutions.
- The cloud. The transition to cloud computing is more than a technical upgrade; it’s a strategic transformation that will define a bank’s operational and competitive capabilities for years to come. In moving to the cloud, banks will have to adopt new security, privacy, compliance, and systems management approaches to realize the benefits of scalability, flexibility, and cost efficiency.
- The implementation. Banks will need to evaluate their own capabilities for implementation and ongoing management, the vendor’s (or their partners’) implementation service offering, and their financial, compliance, and operational constraints before making this decision.
Forrester clients can read our full DBPP Wave evaluation here and register for a webinar, to be held on January 16, 2025, that will go over our learning from this evaluation here.
To explore how to transform your banking infrastructure with a DBPP in a personalized guidance session or inquiry, book time with me here.
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