Interview with Dirk Knauer, RKB Migration Project Manager at Finanz Informatik

Successful use of Aryza solution for high-risk loan processing in the German Savings Banks Group based on an excellent partnership with Finanz Informatik. 

Finanz Informatik, with headquarters in Frankfurt am Main, is one of the driving forces behind digitalisation in the Savings Banks Finance Group. They are the IT service provider for the Savings Banks Finance Group and support standardisation and automation at the institutes using their solutions, therefore improving overall competitiveness. Their customers include 376 Savings Banks, six state banks, DekaBank, eight regional building societies, public insurers, and other companies who are members of the Savings Banks Finance Group or are part of the finance industry.

Finanz Informatik offers complete IT services – from application development to operation of infrastructure and computer centres, and including consultation, training, and support. Today, with OSPlus, the company provides one of the leading banking suites on the German market.

Initial position at Finanz Informatik

Before introducing the Risikokreditbearbeitung program (RKB), the Savings Banks used three different applications, with 160 of them using the Aryza system. Before deciding on an application for the basic system, the functional differences between the applications were identified and evaluated on a specialist and economic level as part of a gap analysis. Once the Finanz Informatik committee decided on the application from Aryza, the specialist functions they had identified were implemented. This set the stage for migration to the RKB application.

Results and situation today

Today, Aryza has integrated their solutions for processing high-risk loans into the basic OSPlus solution from Finanz Informatik. The Aryza products for intensive care, restructuring, processing, and identifying risk provisions are available to all interested Savings Banks as part of the OSPlus basic package. Finanz Informatik ensures support for the launch of the products by transmitting information and basic administration. The market penetration for Savings Banks is at 100 per cent.

Why Aryza?

Aryza was selected based on the overall strategy of hiring a single manufacturer for all Savings Banks. The large scope of services offered by the Aryza solution, which was introduced and used step by step, was a key factor, as was the flexibility and expertise available regarding implementation.

Use and results

The introduction of Aryza’s products had a variety of advantages for the Savings Banks:

• The Savings Banks now have only a single system with defined interfaces that are regularly automatically updated and adjusted by Finanz Informatik. This reduces development costs in terms of regulatory requirements.
• Uniform IT support for the business processes described by the Savings Banks’ associations
• Covers regulatory requirements as set out in MaRisk
• Constantly being developed and adjusted to match regulatory requirements, e.g. AnaCredit, GoBD, FinRep
• Embedded in the OSPlus System, interfaces e.g. to the German Credit Agency SCHUFA.

The project

Outlook and future

The increased regulatory requirements mean that smaller and mid-sized Savings Banks, in particular, are facing massive challenges. Systems that take this into account and are able to quickly create online reports without complications make things easier for the institute and increase efficiency. There are no longer large amounts of extra work that can only be completed if additional personnel are hired.

Over the short term, further standardisation of process sequences and the associated reduction in complexity and administrative work is an important priority. The plan is to integrate the program even further into the OSPlus banking suite.

The options offered by digitalisation provide even more potential for reducing processing times and costs. Self service portals for creditors offer the option of sending documents digitally and delegating tasks to customers. In the future and combined with a chatbot and AI, many partial debt collection processes will be available for further automation.