Analysts at Gartner have recently carried out a study on IT in the banking and investment services in areas including peer-to-peer (P2P) lending, disruptive technologies and security.
The study has found that by 2013, 50% of banks will still lack a formal innovation programme and budget, severely restricting growth potential. By 2013, P2P lending will soar at least 66% to $5bn of outstanding loans. By 2013, 75% of retail banks in North America and Western Europe will have shut down 10% or more of their traditional branches.
Through 2013, 75% of banks will lack the means to systematically identify and exploit potentially disruptive technologies and 90% of bank services hub initiatives that are planned or under way will need to be re-architected on a global basis.
Richard De Lotto, principal research analyst at Gartner, said: “Pressure from governments, regulators and consumers is making some banks risk-averse and creating a culture of introversion and inflexibility. The predominant view of IT is that it is only useful for cutting costs so tactical thinking about automation and rationalisation overwhelms longer-term decision and strategic plans and goals.
“Banking and investment services providers need to make a critical shift to a more outward-facing set of objectives for IT that are risk-aware but still innovative and bold. These institutions must now look beyond the fire-fighting of the current crisis towards planning for the eventual recovery and the new world that comes with it. If they don’t, they will become uncompetitive and fall behind more-forward-thinking rivals.”
