In November 2020, a regional US bank recognized a gap in their product offerings—especially as banking shifted online. To better serve their existing customer base and grow their business into other regions, they needed to build a digital bank to complement their physical branches.

Creating a competitive advantage called for a modern approach, which led the bank to search for a partner with technical expertise that could also manage vendors. Working with Endava from strategy to implementation would allow the bank to modernize their infrastructure, expand their customer reach, and create a more seamless customer experience.

A mission to modernize

After researching modern banking cores, the bank decided to leverage the Finxact core for the new digital product. A project of this size required deep subject-matter expertise on front-end solutions, domains, technical infrastructure, and architecture, as well as effective project management.

The bank’s main challenges included:
■ Launching a scalable digital bank to grow with their customer base
■ Finding an established partner to lead systems integration
■ Creating a streamlined account opening process
■ Establishing a long-term roadmap for digital products

“Our goal was to deliver a competitive and growth-oriented solution while providing the bank the tools to support their new tech stack. From strategy to implementation, we provided subject-matter expertise and partnered with vendors and the bank to create a modern core ecosystem and launch digital consumer products. We also created a framework for self-sustainability by strategically expanding functionality and product offerings beyond the initial product launch.” – Sarah Willis, Senior Industry Consultant

Assembling a team of experts

To help the bank’s new product come to life, Endava brought together a team of digital banking experts, including solution architects, product consultants, testers, and engineers. As the lead systems integrator, Endava worked closely with key vendors to establish a comprehensive plan to make the digital bank a reality.

Endava’s approach included:
■ Leveraging agile principles to coordinate operations across 14+ vendors
■ Developing a cloud environment and infrastructure
■ Delivering banking subject-matter expertise to support decision-making
■ Executing program project management across all stages

Set up to scale

After a phased release and testing in 2021, the digital bank launched to the public in July 2022, enabling customers to open accounts and bank online and through their mobile devices. As the bank’s partnership with Endava continues, their business is set up to scale with the support of modern technology.

Overall, launching the digital bank has allowed the bank to:
■ Increase deposit accounts by 1600%
■ Create seamless online account opening
■ Expand their customer base beyond their existing footprint
■ Improve customer experience with modern self-service options
■ Add 3 checking and savings products and certificate of deposits