Intdiuction the the eBook Moving to Modern Development Practices in Banking: A Playbook
Welcome to the “Modern Banking eBook”, a comprehensive guide for banking institutions embarking on the crucial journey of modernising their software development processes. I’m Romano Roth, and it’s my privilege to walk you through the transformative steps that can reshape the way banks operate in the digital age.
In today’s fiercely competitive banking landscape, the impetus for modernisation is stronger than ever. This drive is fueled by the need for faster time to market, enhanced value for money, and—paramountly— elevated customer satisfaction. These pillars are foundational to thriving in an environment where customer experience is not just a metric but the heart of differentiation. The modern banking ecosystem demands agility, innovation, and a relentless focus on delivering exceptional user experiences. But what prompts banks to initiate this modernisation?
The quest to deliver products to market more swiftly, efficiently, and with tailored customer
experiences at the forefront is the primary catalyst. Modern software development practices, such as continuous deployment, feature flags, and test-driven development, are not merely technical upgrades; they are strategic enablers. These practices enable banks to deploy small, low-risk changes, release features on demand to specific locations or subsets of users, and conduct A/B testing. This approach not only significantly improves the developer experience but also accelerates the release cycle.
However, this journey is not devoid of challenges. Banks face hurdles like stringent compliance and regulatory requirements, traditionally longer development cycles, and the inertia of legacy systems. Overcoming these obstacles requires a thoughtful approach, starting with fostering a culture of modernisation, embracing cloud and hybrid infrastructures, and adopting practices like DevSecOps to shift left on
quality assurance and security.
The first steps towards modernisation involve embracing strategies that allow for the decoupling of application landscapes and moving towards a composable and event-driven architecture. This approach, underpinned by APIs and a separation from core banking systems, paves the way for a more agile, responsive banking environment.
The benefits of embarking on this modernisation journey are profound. Teams will experience heightened efficiency, a more collaborative development culture, and the ability to deliver innovative solutions that directly enhance the customer experience. Moreover, the strategic implementation of an Internal Developer Portal (IDP) and platform engineering principles will be instrumental. These elements serve as the bedrock for a banking institution’s transformation into a digital factory, where everything with customer exposure is custom-built on a platform designed to enable and empower teams.
Looking ahead, the future of banking processes is bright with the promise of AI, multi-cloud strategies, distributed teams, and a shift towards thinking in products and value streams. The goal is a banking sector that is not just adaptable and efficient, but also acutely attuned to the evolving demands of the market and its customers.
This eBook lays out a roadmap for modernising banking software development, covering critical areas such as feature flags, observability, CI/CD, authorisation, and platform management. Through the lens of a case study on Komerční Banka and discussions on open source and modernisation strategies, we aim to provide you with the knowledge and tools to transform your banking operations.
Everything that has customer exposure is a differentiator and must be custom-built. To achieve this, banks need a platform that enables their teams to build it. In essence, banks are becoming digital factories—innovative, efficient, and customer-centric. Let us embark
on this journey together, laying the foundations for a future where banks are not just financial institutions but digital powerhouses that drive economic growth and customer satisfaction.
Download the full eBook: Modern Development Practices in Banking: A Playbook