Oberbank Bank Chooses IBM

Bank Chooses IBM System p running FLEXCUBE(R) for Greater Scalability and Faster ROI

IBM and i-flex solutions today announced that Oberbank, an Austrian bank focused on international expansion and a member of the "3 Banken Gruppe" (3 banks group), has selected IBM's System p running i-flex's flagship product, FLEXCUBE, for its core banking operations in Hungary. The technology will support Oberbank's globalization efforts in Hungary.

Oberbank is currently transforming from a regional to a multinational bank to benefit from the economic opportunities that are emerging in Eastern Europe. In an effort to gain flexibility, agility and improve customer service, Oberbank is moving away from its previous banking application in Eastern Europe to FLEXCUBE from i-flex, an IBM Business Partner, and one of the world's leading providers of technology solutions to the global financial services industry.

FLEXCUBE will become the core banking solution for both commercial and personal accounts at several new branches opening in Hungary in the next 12 months. One of several advantages of the new application is real-time updates of deposit and withdrawal data at ATM's, which will improve customer service. FLEXCUBE also provides reduced total cost of ownership, a fast deployment time for new products and sales channel strategies, as well as high flexibility and scalability. The functional blocks of FLEXCUBE are based on the concept of Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) allowing easy integration with legacy systems.

IBM Global Technology Services and IBM Global Business Services will install FLEXCUBE on an IBM System p570.

Once the project is completed, and pending the decision of local branches, IBM will have the opportunity to implement the infrastructure in other countries - reusing the same assets and skills. The first branch is expected to be ready for business in April 2007.

"As part of Austria's 3 Banken Gruppe, we focus on customer satisfaction, growth and profitability in both existing and new markets. With this growth come challenges, which is why we selected IBM and i-flex, both experienced partners that understand our needs and the needs of our customers," said Bernhard Reiter, Senior General Manager, Information Technology, Oberbank.

"IBM is deeply committed to developing innovative solutions to help its clients expand to new, emerging markets," said Johannes Koch, Global Technology Services, IBM Austria. "IBM's collaboration with Oberbank, one of the leaders in the banking industry, will enable the bank to quickly respond to new market opportunities and challenges" - IBM.