IBM, i-flex form global alliance

New Delhi: IBM and i-Flex Solutions, a leading provider of IT solutions to the global financial services industry, have announced a global strategic alliance to deliver and market core banking replacement solutions to medium- and large-size banks in major markets worldwide. The joint solution will help reduce costs and streamline operational efficiencies by transitioning a bank's legacy core banking infrastructure and applications to a modern banking platform.

Under the terms of the alliance, i-Flex will make Flexcube for retail banking available, in a phased manner, on IBM's J2EE-based WebSphere Internet infrastructure software and DB2 Universal Database. This move will make Flexcube available on open standard IBM platforms thereby enhancing reach to tier-1 and tier-2*** banks across the globe.

Flexcube, which already runs on IBM's eServer pSeries servers, will now run on the complete range of IBM servers. The Flexcube retail banking solution will be available in Q3 2004. Both companies will also make available in the future other parts of the Flexcube suite of products on the IBM platform.

"In this highly competitive environment, banks need to focus on aligning technology investments with the need to integrate multiple platforms and diverse lines of business," says Abraham Thomas, managing director, IBM India. "With i-Flex Solutions, we will provide customers with a flexible and open-standards based solution that will help them increase operational efficiency and lower costs."

The potential benefits of the IBM and i-Flex solutions global alliance include:

• Reduction in the total cost of ownership and increased operational efficiencies by eliminating costly redundancies and inefficient processes
• Topline growth through effective competitive differentiation and the adoption of a more focused and effective customer-centric enterprise
• Reduction of risk management capital requirements
• Ability to improve customer loyalty and manage risk
• Choice of a range of offerings from a single source

"The real winners here are our customers," says Deepak Ghaisas, CEO (India operations) and CFO, i-Flex Solutions. "The world's top-selling core-banking solution supported and enabled by the largest and most experienced technology vendor in the world is a compelling value proposition for any financial institution interested in reducing costs and increasing service levels."

As part of the alliance IBM will promote Flexcube (ranked the No1 selling universal banking solution in the world by International Banking Systems, UK, for the year 2002) as part of a leading banking solution for customers in the UNIX/NT environment. IBM will also provide consulting, implementation and integration services.