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Frank Tezzi, vice-president, CGI Financial Services, Trade & Payments in Montreal-CGI of information -based information and business services technologies, explains how SaaS can help banks meet future customer commercial financing needs.
Global finance: Banks rush to stay in advance on the evolution of the global market for financing trade and meet the expansion needs of customers. What is the importance of a software role as a (SaaS) service?
Frank Tezzi: Banks are faced with complex opposite winds in the current climate, including increased customer expectations and compliance, an increase in computer and operational costs, a reduction in budgets and a development of products. Using a SaaS application, they can carry out a coherent long -term cost structure, reduce it general costs and take advantage of collective progress and basic computer development. This allows banks to focus on their market differentiaries while ensuring that they are on modern platforms that meet the future needs of products.
GF: How does the CGI addresses the regulatory landscape evolving trade financing, including the requirements and screening for the requirements for the fight against money laundering and the fight against money laundering (KYC / AML)?
Tezzi: The CGI team of experts collaborates with our customers to monitor local and global regulatory changes underway. As part of our current technological updates, we regularly add new capacities according to customer needs and required regulatory updates. CGI is also proactively committing with a wide range of Fintech partners to integrate the best capacities in our existing ecosystem, ensuring that our customers have access to value -added services in their commercial treatment.
GF: What impact Basel III had on trade financing and how banks adjust their risk management practices?
Tezzi: Basel III continues to pose significant challenges for global commercial banks as the final rules are established. The increase in the cost of capital is a major concern, which means that banks become more selective in their funding. This often means the priority of less risky customers, which could unfortunately expand the existing commercial financing gap for small and medium -sized enterprises, especially in more risky markets.
In response to these pressures, banks move their commercial models. Instead of holding assets on their books, they are more and more from and distribute them. This reduces the continuous cost of capital while allowing a more effective risk distribution.
Finally, there is a strong will towards greater efficiency in the banking system. To cope with the increase in business cost, banks are looking for technological solutions that offer more automation and transparent integration. To realize this, banks must modernize their basic platforms to support future innovations and remain competitive.
GF: Your SaaS offer, CGI Trade360, has recently managed to succeed with US Bank, Natwest, HSBC and Bladex. What are the main contributors to its success?
Tezzi: CGI is unique on the market for a coherent implementation delivery to our customers; This is done by taking advantage of our very timid commercial consultants. CGI Trade360 has been working on the market for over 24 years. It uses our implementation methodology, based on more than 40 years of experience in market practice and motivated by our vast governance processes, which guarantee the excellence of delivery for complex commitments.
All this is supported by an application developed in close collaboration with our customers to meet the general needs of the market. Finally, CGI considers all commitments within the framework of a holistic partnership with our customers, in particular given our imprint of advice extended in more than 500 financial institutions in the world.
GF: How do you apply artificial intelligence within CGI Trade360 to improve trade financing operations, and how important it will be in the future?
Tezzi: The clearest use case is today to automate intelligent processes. CGI has collaborated with various partners, notably Conpend’s Tradeai, to integrate these capacities into our back office workflow. The data is automatically extracted from physical documents and lifts in CGI Trade360, including parts of conformity and differences compared to the underlying transaction. All this is built on the basis of AI solutions. This type of treatment is a necessary stop stop on the path of a larger start to start. CGI is committed to investing more than a billion dollars in AI services and solutions over the next three years, which will have a wide impact on the capacities of CGI Trade360.