Santander digitalizes its core banking with cloud technology to improve service and efficiency

Banco Santander is digitalizing its core banking with cloud technology to improve service and efficiency. The core  banking platform is the most critical part of a bank’s IT infrastructure and is where the main financial  transactions, such as money transfers, deposits or loans, are processed. Santanderis one of the first major banks  in the world to digitalize its core banking and has already made significant progress, with 80% of its IT  infrastructure already on the cloud. 

Santander is using Gravity, a bespoke innovative software, developed in-house, to enable the transition of the  core banking to the cloud. This software plays an essential role in modernizing the core banking platform. 

The transformation will allow easier and faster access to data, more simplicity and faster time-to-market,  making it possible to deliver new capabilities in hours, instead of days, and more frequent app updates, while  helping the bank drive value using real-time analytics and provide better products and services. This change will also reduce the cost of running the core banking platform. 

The group expects to complete this transition in all its core markets and businesses within two to three years. 

Dirk Marzluf, chief operating and technology officer at Banco Santander, said: “Gravity will help transform  Santander into a ‘digital-native’ company, with the agility and capabilities to offer the best customer experience,  while continuing to provide the solid security for data and assets we’ve always delivered our customers. The  initiative is an important next step in the bank’s transition to a common tech stack that is utilised across the  group’s footprint for the benefit of both customers and shareholders. We are now closer to Santander’s aim of  becoming the best open financial services platform.” 

Santander’s successful cloud platform is built upon world-class capabilities – both in-house and through  third-party providers. This gives Santander’s 16,500 software developers and engineers a modern, high performing environment to create customer-centric applications and increases the bank’s ability to attract top  talent. Santander’s cloud programme also reduces the bank’s energy consumption for the IT infrastructure by  70%, contributing to Santander’s responsible banking targets.