Infosys banking unit plans Europe foray

The banking business unit of Infosys Technologies is seeking a headway in Europe and has launched a slew of products such as web-based cash management and mobile payment aimed at large and medium-sized corporates.

The division, whose flagship product is the Finacle software suite, is said to enjoy an over 50 per cent share of the new contracts for core banking solutions being signed in India, Africa, Middle East and South East Asia.

The company has not been able to break into the core banking solutions market in Europe but is building towards that by offering customer-oriented services.

"The European banking system is still running on a 15-year-old legacy technology and they are very sensitive about any change in technology. But various research reports indicate that in 3-5 years they will be ready for a complete overhauling of their installed systems," said Merwin Fernandes, vice-president and global head of sales and marketing at Infosys banking business unit.

Fernandes said the company is making substantial investment towards understanding the European market.

Infosys has employed the services of three consultants, Tower Group, Sealand and Peppers & Rogers to study market regulations and existing competition.

The Bangalore-based software major is also looking at entering the United States, Australian and Latin American markets over the next 12-18 months.

"Our main advantage in these markets is that we offer everything from back-office support to system integration to consultancy to the actual product. "No competition can offer the same end-to-end proposition," Fernandes claimed.