Software As A Service Products For Financial Sector
Updated: Dec 7, 2021
In conditions of fierce competition, financial area representatives use digital technologies much more actively than 10 years ago. And it seems that this trend will be eternal. In 2019 core banking software market value was over $ 8 bln. It's predicted that it will grow up to almost $ 29 bln by 2027. Reputable companies like Medium and Deloitte determine digital innovations must-have for banks and other financial institutions. Demand creates supply, so vendors release a variety of suitable products to support this segment. JEVERA decided to discover more about SaaS here and to share the results with you. Let's see what came of it.
Finance Company Software: Common Features
Any company likes to purchase Software as a Service because of convenience. It is enough just to pay a subscription fee to receive benefits from development without thinking about its support or installing additional hardware. The SaaS product market for the financial industry is diverse. However, such solutions have the following features in common:
Omnichannel. Earlier, we talked about the importance of a customer-oriented omnichannel approach for the neo banks' development. Any financial enterprise should think about clients first since the last ones determine its success. Thus, all systems must work to provide a flawless customer experience. SaaS products support and develop this concept.
Security. The financial industry operates with sensitive data. They are protected by bank secrecy. Not only banks but also other enterprises here are liable for unauthorized information disclosure. Therefore, in this case, SaaS products must prevent any illegal actions and ensure a high level of data safety.
Compliance. You probably know that the financial area is extremely regulated. Here SaaS helps companies comply with state and international payment systems requirements, like data security, multi-level user verification, etc.
Availability. It concerns any user's ability to work with products conveniently, ensured by multilanguage and multi-currency features.
Highly Scalable. SaaS for the financial sector has to proceed with a vast amount of data and requests simultaneously and unmistakably.
Smooth Work. It is core for this business to provide services smoothly in real-time mode. The speed of reaction determines a company's popularity. That's why used Software as a Service should also ensure it.
Choosing a SaaS product, a company should focus on its needs and the software quality based on the above features.
SaaS Product For Banking And Other Financial Areas
The financial industry software can be divided into core financial services systems (like ERP) and middleware (like a contact center).
The first systems perform vital financial functions, like processing transactions, generating client data, etc. They ensure entire business activity.
The middleware provides integration between core systems to facilitate their work and make it customer-centric. It could be some additional products, simplifying a document flow or data processing.
Complex SaaS solutions often include both core systems and middleware. Thus, there is no need to use a variety of software. Let's consider what areas are covered by ready-made SaaS and what kind of products vendors can offer the financial sector in 2021.
Processing System
It's the heart of any bank, ensuring prompt transactions. Perhaps it performs one of the principal functions, interacting with payment systems, banking, and other financial institutions. SaaS products covering this process provide employees with accurate information on customer actions, multi-layered data protection, and the ability to build customized communications with each client. The shining examples of such ready-made technologies in banking could be Temenos Transact and SecurePaymentz.
CRM
CRM system. The customer relationship management software allows an enterprise to interact with the audience. It contains customer experience information and updates it in real-time. Such systems support marketing and analytics, providing departments with valuable insights into customer preferences and trends in their behavior. Here, SaaS products can keep contact centers running, increasing sales and improving client experience. Among the financial industry representatives, the most popular CRM SaaS are Pulse, Infusionsoft by Keap, Salesforce Sales Cloud Software.
Marketing
Marketing-oriented Software as a Service helps an enterprise grow its audience and communicate with it in the right way. This group includes online banking products, loyalty system features as well as analytics tools. All of them allow marketers to satisfy the audience by a user-friendly interface, pleasure bonuses, and smart communication due to well-analyzed personal data. To boost this area, finance companies should pay attention to the following types of products from financial service providers: Launch Marketing, Blend, EBANQ.
ERP
The Enterprise resource planning system is a key one for the financial area and any business. It combines the financial (accounting, reporting) and human resources management (employment, KPIs, etc.) as well as legal support, compliance, and security. This software must be stable and reliable. That's why here companies often use custom development. However, robust ready-made ERP solutions are still there. For instance, SAP S/4HANA Finance, Epicor ERP Financial Management, or Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP.
The Bottom Line
While the finance area is far from one of the easiest to implement SaaS, the industry is investing heavily in off-the-shelf products. The last ones allow companies to introduce modern AI, IoT technologies and update the existing system, providing an impeccable client and employee experience. However, it is not always advisable to use vendor products here. Since the client, security, and compliance are above all, an enterprise should think about custom development first. In this case, a result will provide a high level of security, 100% compliance, and a fully customized approach to each client.