Financial services organisations are under increasing pressure to differentiate and gain a competitive edge against increasingly cloud native FinTech businesses. This paired with the ever-present security risks and strict compliant requirements leaves financial firms searching for better ways to serve their customers while keeping overhead costs down.
Finance is changing
Disruptive newcomers are taking a fresh look at the way financial services are done, from investments to personal banking, and leaning on technology to set themselves apart. Digital-only banks like Monzo have gained a competitive edge in recent years by making it easy for customers to manage their finances online and saving on the cost of physical branches. Meanwhile investment apps like Robinhood have appealed to vast numbers of potential investors by putting access to the stock market in the palm of their hand. The UK Government’s Kalifa Review of UK FinTech cited 71% of UK citizens are now using the services of at least one fintech company.
Consumers are taking note of these new services and expectations of financial firms are rising. 82% of consumers expect their financial service digital experiences to match or exceed that of tech giants, a number that remains consistent across age groups. Meanwhile, only 28% of respondents say they’re satisfied with the services provided by their financial institutions (FIs).
Financial firms are taking notice
Amid the disruption in the market, financial institutions are reevaluating the services they offer and embracing the opportunity of cloud technology. According to research by Frost & Sullivan, 76% of financial firms cite ‘improve customer experience’ as a top goal in cloud adoption. According to Microsoft, they continue to see strong cloud adoption from the financial services industry. More than 80% of the world’s largest banks and more than 75% of the global systemically important financial institutions use Azure.
Why Azure is right for finance
It’s clear to see why cloud adoption, and more specifically hosting in Azure, is popular in financial services. Azure allows financial firms to rise to the challenge of the changing market by giving them a secure, reliable and scalable platform to build on. The pay-as-you-use model allows financial firms to limit their spend to only what they need, rather than paying out for costly on-premises servers which require significant up-front investment and maintenance costs.
Scale your resources up and down as you need them and optimise your Azure environment to automatically turn off any resources you’re not using. With Azure, the cost is based on your consumption, so you’re never wasting money on capacity you don’t need.
It’s not just the overheads savings drawing financial firms to Azure, it’s the security, compliance and governance features too. Whether you work with clients internationally or solely based in the UK, our experts can establish resource governance rules to ensure your resources are always maintained in compliance with the relevant restrictions. Plus, as an Azure Expert MSP, we will build your Azure environment with security in mind, based on industry best practices and the latest threat intelligence. With the help of our experts you can be confident your environment is secure and compliant from day one.
What’s the next step?
Implementing Azure is easy and hassle-free with our Azure services. We’ll establish your Azure environment and make managing it a breeze with our Cloud Management Portal. Review all the vital information you need to know about your cloud environment on demand and at a glance, from your spend to security posture and CO2 consumption.
Get started on your cloud journey and find out all your need to know with advice tailored to your needs with a free expert consultation.
