Compaq Computer South Africa, through its Global Services division, has engineered a complete virtual banking solution for 20twenty, a division of Saambou Bank, in what is considered to be a first for the financial services industry in SA.
Says Henry Ferreira, managing director at Compaq Computer South Africa: "20twenty is SA`s first Internet-only banking service, providing a revolutionary approach to personal financial management via the Internet and the automatic teller machine (ATM) network on a 24x7 basis. Compaq`s assistance was requested by Saambou Bank while searching for a core banking solution that would meet the needs of a truly virtual banking operation.
"At the time, the concept of the virtual bank was already developed and the company was looking for a technology partner capable of delivering more than just a bunch of boxes. What emerged from our discussions was a joint effort in the engineering of a complete end-to-end, high availability technology solution to a business need and which encompassed not only the technology behind the banking service, but also the services necessary to get it up and running and to allow it to remain fully operational such as project management, integration services, software and gateway development as well as training and hardware support.
"The infrastructure behind 20twenty is a milestone for Compaq, particularly its Global Services division in SA, which assisted in the design of a banking solution that would provide for the aggressive needs of 20twenty."
Compaq Global Services worked closely with 20twenty in the design and implementation of the system which, unlike conventional banking systems that rely mainly on proprietary systems and batch processing, required that transactions take place in real-time. The core banking system, Fincentric`s iWealthview product, runs on the Microsoft Windows 2000 platform and multiple Intel-based Compaq ProLiant servers to ensure real time delivery as well as enhance manageability and scalability while reducing the cost of ownership through the use of industry standards.
At the top end are Compaq`s 8-way ProLiant 8500 servers with Intel Xeon 700MHz processors. The storage area network, based on Compaq`s StorageWorks technology, has a capacity of 5TB and is replicated to another SAN on the bank`s remote disaster recovery site. In addition to running the banking engine, the servers also run Microsoft`s Internet Information Server 5 (IIS5) and SQL Server 7 as well as Visual Studio .Net which allows developers to engineer and deploy powerful mission-critical applications quickly and efficiently; Mosaic Software`s EFT solution, e.piphany`s E.5 software analytic platform and personalisation tools; and CA`s Unicenter TNG enterprise management software.
To ensure that its customers are able to connect to its services anywhere, anytime, 20twenty operates multiple Web servers linked to three major ISPs - SAIX, UUNet and Internet Solution. The Web servers run off load balancing switches which direct Web traffic down the most efficient path. The banking service`s 100Mbps of LAN bandwidth is managed by a central Layer 3 switch.
Adds Ferreira: "The involvement of Compaq Global Services in the design, integration and implementation of the Core Banking solution and entire infrastructure of 20twenty is an indication of the commitment by the division to providing total business solutions to the financial industry. 20twenty is utilising leading edge solutions and technology to revolutionise banking in SA and I believe the world and the ability to develop a virtual banking service in Africa is indicative of the level of intellectual capital we have invested here in SA and truly reflects Compaq`s capability in the solutions market. The Compaq strategy to "Ensure Customer successes through Global Partnerships, Solutions and Services" is truly illustrated in the 20twenty experience where best-of-breed technology and services were deployed. We have openly stated that we will `build the business-critical Internet` and `redefine the internet experience` and 20twenty is a shining example of Inspiration Technology."
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