2025年创造者之声：核心银行系统现代化与全企业AI应用研究报告

IBMInstituteforBusinessValue|ExpertInsights

2025TheVoiceoftheMakers

CorebankingmodernizationandAIenterprise-wide

露BIAN

BankingIndustry

mm®

ArchitectureNetwork

Howwecanhelp

IBM

Modernfinancialinstitutionsdemandmodularity,

security,openness,AI-drivencapabilities,and

collaborationonahybridcloud.AtIBM,weempoweryoutoelevatecustomerexperiences,modernizecorebankinginfrastructures,pioneerinnovativepaymentsolutions,

andtransformenterpriseriskmanagement.Learnmoreat

/industries/banking-financial-markets

BIAN

FinancialinstitutionsuseBIANasastartingpointtohelpdefineandorganizetheirITsoftwareandservicesneedsinastandard,rationalizedwayaroundtheBIANservicelandscape.Thisinturnincreasesanorganization’sagilitytodelivertheneedsofitscustomers.BIANprovidesan

industrymodelforcreatinganarchitecturalframeworkthatmakesintegrationofsoftwareandservices

capabilitieseasierandfasterthroughastandardsetofdefinitions.Themodelissupportedby250predefinedAPIs.Learnmoreat

Introduction

Overthepastdecade,bankshavepouredresourcesintocloud-nativecore

bankingmodernizationtoachievedigitalexcellence.Yet,researchshows

ongoingissues.Theyincludecostoverruns,delays,andpoorROI,withfewerthanhalfofCIOsreportingsubstantialimprovementsinefficiency,customerexperiences,orinnovationagility.ThesechallengeshighlighttheurgencyforastrategicshiftamidrapidtechcyclesandAI’swidespreadadoption.

Forward-thinkingCIOsareleveraginggenerativeAItospeedupsoftware

development,advancingfrombasiccodegenerationtoadvancedframeworksthatanalyzelegacysystems,extractbusinessrules,andautomateprocessesend-to-end.ThisrequiresrethinkingoperatingmodelswithAI-integrated

workflows,embracingindustrystandardstoresolveapplicationdisarray,andcraftinghybridcloudstrategiesformodularity,scalability,andreal-timecapabilities—whileaddressingriskaversionandsilos.

AsAIsurgesforward,masteringthisblendofAIacceleration,strategicalignment,andresilientgovernancewilldistinguishthrivinginstitutions,unlockingasymmetricalcompetitiveadvantages,exponentialgrowth,andfuture-fitplatformsinanintenselycompetitivelandscape.

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TheIBMInstituteofBusinessValue(IBMIBV)invitedexecutivesfrom10financialinstitutionsandserviceproviderstodiscusstheirstrategicperspectivesonhowbankssucceedincorebankingmodernization,

andscalingAIenterprise-widewithadvancedriskmanagement:

Akbank

GökhanGökçay

ExecutiveVice

President,Technology

DNB

NicolaiRygh

ChiefTechnologyOfficer,RetailBank

Nubank

FelipeLamounier

HeadofAIProductsStrategy

Bancolombia

AlvaroErnesto

CarmonaRuiz

ChiefTechnologyOfficer

FirstRand

GordonLittle

Executivepaymentsandplatforms

Nubank

JulianaBarbySimãoGlobalHeadofModelRiskManagement

Bancolombia

CamiloPiedrahitaMacias

SeniorITDirector

DeveloperPlatforms

GetnetbySantander

AlexandreOliveira

VPofRisks,

Collections,AML,

Fraud,andCompliance

TDBankGroup

VipulLalka

VicePresident,

ExecutiveProduct

Owner,DigitalServicing,

Bancolombia

DanielUmbertoAyalaMarin

Leaderof

ITExcellenceCenter

IntesaSanpaolo

RitaGnutti

ExecutiveDirector,InternalValidationandControls

UOB

StuartSmith

HeadofInnovation,GroupRetailTMRW

Bancolombia

EmanuelMedinaGomez

LeaderofIT

EngineeringPlatform

Nubank

CaioBanti

ChiefRiskOfficerBrazil

ZAFIN

CharbelSafadi

ChiefExecutiveOfficer

CanadianPersonalBanking

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BuildcompetitiveadvantagebymodernizingyourbankingcorewithAI

Innovationinbankingpresentsformidablechallengesforestablishedinstitutions,constrainedbyclientresponsibilities,regulatorydemands,andthecomplexity

ofjustifyinglong-terminitiativesamidpersistenttechnicaldebt.Tobuild

asymmetricalcompetitiveadvantages,banksmusttransitionfromtacticaltostrategicapproaches,reimaginingoperatingmodelswhereAIsimplifiescomplexities,reorchestratesworkflows,andembedsbusinesslogicinto

technologicalprogress.

CentraltothisstrategyisAI’sintegrationinsoftwaredevelopment,evolving

fromgeneratingtestcasesandcodesnippetstocreatingscalableframeworksthatderivenewcodefrombusinessrulesandminelegacysystemsforcode

translationandvalidation.Byextractingandstructuringtheserules,bankscanautomatecodegenerationandachieveend-to-endefficiency.

Herearesomeoftheinsightsfromourpanelofexecutives:

“Webelievethattechnologyandleadershipmust

“Today’sCIOsmustbestrategicpartnerstothe

closelyalignwithstrategicprioritiessuchas

business,forgingstrongrelationshipsacross

customersatisfaction,operationalexcellence,

unitsandleveragingtechnologyasacatalyst

andresponsiblegrowth—makingtechanintegralpartofbusinessstrategy,notaseparateentity.”

forsustainablegrowth.”

DanielUmbertoAyalaMarin

GökhanGökçay

LeaderofITExcellenceCenter

ExecutiveVicePresident,Technology

Bancolombia

Akbank

“WithagenticAI,therealchallengewillbeoperating

“Weoperateonthebeliefthatwhatworkedyesterday

modelsthemselves.Organizationsarenolonger

mightnotworktomorrow.…Withtheenergyof

simplydeployingsoftwarebutredesigninghow

astartup,wearealwaysreadytotrynewthings,

theyoperate.”

whipupprototypes,andexplorewhat’spossible.”

StuartSmith

FelipeLamounier

HeadofInnovation,GroupRetailTMRW

HeadofAIProductsStrategy

UOB

Nubank

“We’renotjustadoptingAI—we’releveragingit

tocreateanasymmetriccompetitiveadvantage”

AlvaroErnestoCarmonaRuiz

ChiefTechnologyOfficerBancolombia

Changecorebankingtiresatfullbusinessspeed

Corebankingmodernizationisessentialamidacceleratingtechnologycycles,demandingresilientfoundationsthatalignITwithevolvingbusinessstrategies.ProactiveCIOleadershipmakesdeliberatedecisionsabouthybridinfrastructure,APIstandards,andAItoboostdevelopers’experiencesandefficiency,while

overcomingriskaversionandsiloedmindsets.Banksadoptphasedapproaches,prioritizingvaluecreationoverone-and-doneoverhauls—decouplingdatafromlegacycores,phasingoutmonolithiccodeandshiftingtomodular,real-timecoresystems.Cloudenablesscalability,thoughitrequirescostmanagement;generativeAIautomatestasksbutintroduces“blackbox”risks,necessitatingtalentreevaluation.

Drawingfromfintechinspirations,bankscanchangethewheelwhiledriving,

balancingstabilitywithinnovationthroughinternalcultureshiftsandexternal

partnerships.Ultimately,reimaginingcustomerjourneysviainnovativeecosystemsdifferentiateswinners,fosteringscalable,future-fitplatformsforgrowthandloyalty.

Herearesomeoftheinsightsfromourpanelofexecutives:

“Ifyoufocussolelyonefficiency,youriskmissingoutonnewproductopportunities.Butifyouswingtoo

fartheotherway—prioritizingproductinnovationwithoutoperationaldiscipline—youcreate

long-terminefficienciesthatarehardtounwind.”

GordonLittle

ExecutivepaymentsandplatformsFirstRandGroup

“Theultimategoalistosimplifycomplexityand

fosteracohesiveecosystemwhereAI,platform

engineering,andgovernanceintegrateseamlesslytodrivetransformationatscale.”

EmanuelMedinaGomez

LeaderofITEngineeringPlatformBancolombia

“AtTD,generativeAIiscreatingamoreintegrated

environmentwherebusinessandtechnologyteamsspeakacommonlanguageandcancollaboratemoreseamlessly.Inthatsense,it’snotjustatool—it’sa

shiftinhowweoperateandinnovate.”

VipulLalka

VicePresident,ExecutiveProductOwner,

DigitalServicing,CanadianPersonalBankingTDBankGroup

“Insteadofahigh-risk‘bigbang’migration,we

arereplacingmainframecapabilitiesstepbystep,

incorporatingmodernarchitecturesandapplicationlayers.Ourcorestrategyextendsbeyondmere

modernization;itaimstodeliverseamless,real-time,andcomprehensivedigitalexperiences

thatalignwithchangingcustomerbehaviors.”

“Banksneedtomovepasttheideathattheyare

tech-firstcompanies.Instead,theyshouldrefocusonbeingexceptionalfinancialserviceproviders,

enabledbytechnologybutnotdefinedbyit.”

CharbelSafadi

CEO

ZAFIN

NicolaiRygh

ChiefTechnologyOfficer,RetailBankDNB

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Createanewprofession:TheAIriskmanager

IntheAIera,robustriskmanagementisvitalforbankstoharnessgenerative

andagenticAI’spotentialwhileprotectinginstitutionalintegrityandensuring

regulatorycompliance.BycultivatingaculturewhereallbankersserveasAI

riskmanagers,institutionscantransitionfromreactivetoproactivestrategies.Theshiftreliesontransparentcollaborationamongbusinessunits,IT,andriskteamstodetectandaddressthreatslikemodelbiases,dataprivacybreaches,andoperationalvulnerabilities.Tailoredapproaches,suchastieredvalidationbymodelcriticality,enablerigorousoversightforhigh-impactsystemsandautomatetasksliketestorchestrationandreportgenerationunderhumansupervision.

Riskmanagementactsasacatalystwhenimplementingproprietaryorthird-partyfoundationalmodels,convertingchallengesintoadvantagesviaadaptive,data-drivenmethods.Atthesametime,AItoolsenhanceriskmanagementexpertise—forinstance,throughgenerativeAIforcodetranslation,anomalydetection,andimprovedoversight—allowingriskandcompliancetoupholdstrongcontrols

whilespeedinginnovation.

Herearesomeoftheinsightsfromourpanelofexecutives:

“Akeylessonwe’velearnedistheescalatingchallengeofvulnerabilitiesintheindustry—agenuineandurgentproblem.Totacklethis,we’reemployingAItoclosevulnerabilities

moreeffectively.”

CamiloPiedrahitaMacias

SeniorITDirectorDeveloperPlatformsBancolombia

“‘Riskmanagementbydesign’makesour

approachproactiveratherthanreactivebyembeddingriskmanagementalongside

businessdevelopment.”

JulianaBarbySimão

GlobalHeadofModelRiskManagementNubank

“BeforeAIcanaddvalue,wemustensurethequality,consistency,andreliabilityofthedatawefeedit.”

AlexandreOliveira

VPofRisks,Collections,AML,Fraud,andCompliance

GetnetbySantander

“ThisAI-drivenevolutionaboutthewaywework

andusedataspansacrosstheentireenterprise,

introducingspecificAIriskmanagementrequirementscallingforaculturalshift.Achangeinwhichevery

employee,fromleadershiptofrontlinestaff,actsasanAIriskmanager.”

CaioBanti

ChiefRiskOfficer,BrazilNubank

“Overall,wemustembracetheopportunitiesAIoffers—notjustforinnovation,butasapowerfulformofinternalvalidation.However,withrapidchangescomerealrisks.Thekeyisnottoshy

awayfromtheserisks,buttoapproachthemwithintention.”

RitaGnutti

ExecutiveDirector,ValidationandControlsBancaIntesaSanpaolo

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Akbank

GökhanGökçay

ExecutiveVicePresident,Technology

Thepaceoftechnologyinnovationanditslifecycleaccelerateconstantly,challengingtherelevanceofbusinessstrategyanddemandingtechnologytoreshapeitsownfoundationswhilestayingresilient.

InthisinterviewwithIBM’sPaoloSironi,GökhanGökçay—TechnologyExecutiveVicePresidentandCIOat

AkbankinTürkiye—discussesaligningITinitiativeswithbusinessstrategy,anddoingsoamidrapidevolution

whereproactiveCIOleadershipmeansstayingaheadofbusinessneeds.Theconversationemphasizes

anticipationandearlyinvestment,focusingoncloud,APIs,andAItoenhancecustomerexperienceand

operationalefficiency.Keychallengesincluderiskaversionandsiloedmentality,whilesuccessmetricshighlightreducedtime-to-marketandsharedROI.

Howcantechnologyinitiativesalignwithbusinessstrategyamidrapidchanges,ensuringbothevolvetogethertosupporttransformation?

AtAkbank,oneofTürkiye’sleadingandmostinnovativefinancialinstitutions,we

seeourselvesasacatalystforshapingthefutureoffinance.Ourvisionistocombine

thestrengthofatrustedlegacywiththeagilityofdigitaltransformation,ensuring

weremainattheforefrontofglobalbankingtrends.

Technologyisattheheartofthisambition,servingasboththebackboneofour

operationsandthedriverofnewopportunities.Buildingonthisvision,ourtechnology

teamisalwaysproactivelyanticipatingthebank’sstrategicdirectiontoenableagile

adaptationandinvestaheadofthecurve.Whilecertainelementsofbusinessstrategy

arequiteclearandarecommongoalsacrossmostbanks;theycomewithobvious

technologyneedssuchasagility,digitalization,AIcapabilities,andcustomer

experience.

Butsuccessfulexecutiondependsheavilyontechnologyfoundationandhoweach

bank’sbusinessandtechnologyteamsworktogether.Forus,thearchitectureplays

apivotalroleinensuringaseamlessandintuitivecustomerexperience,builton

modularfront-endlayersanddynamicorchestrationframeworks.Resilience,

scalability,andtechnologicalexcellenceremainamongourhighestpriorities.

Clearly,therearemorespecificornicherequirementsthatemergefromtimetotime.

Forinstance,werecognizedthestrategicopportunitytoonboardclientsdigitallyand

madeearlyinvestmentstoanticipateregulatorychanges.Byanticipatingtheshift,

wewerereadywitharobustonboardingsolutionatthetimenewregulationswent

live,gainingacompetitiveadvantagesupportingcustomeracquisitionandcross-

sellstrategies.

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AkbankGökhanGökçay,ExecutiveVicePresident,Technology

Dobusinessandtechnologymoveatthesamepace?

It’saracewherebothpartieswinasateam.Technologicalinnovationevolvesquicker

thaneverandinformsandshapesevolvingbusinessstrategy—becauseastheworld

changes,strategymustadapt.Ofcourse,thepaceofadoptionvariesacrossgeographies

andorganizations,andsomegapbetweentechnologicalmaturityandoperational

implementationisexpected.Thekeyishowwidethatgapbecomes.

Takebigdata:whenitemerged,westrategicallytransitionedtoleveragingunstructureddataforenhanceddecision-making.Thenmobiletechnologiescompletelychangedhowusersinteractedwithapplications.APIsfollowed,unlockinganeweraofcollaborationwithcorporatepartnersthroughscalable,real-timeintegrations.Thisledtotheriseof

APIbankingandexpansivedigitalecosystems.Later,chatbotsintroducedconversationalbanking,changinghowcustomersengagedwithus.Now,AIagentsarehere—andtheywon’tjustreshapedigitaltouchpointsbutcouldalsodriveawholenewwaveof

transformationinouroperatingmodels.

WhichmajorITinitiativesunderpinsuccessindeployingbusinessstrategy?

It’saboutarchitecture,APIs,andAI.

Thefirstkeypillariscloud-basedarchitectures.Regardlessofthesetup,most

largebanksaremodernizingtheirapplicationportfolios,andthattrendwillcontinue.

ThesecondisAPIs.Wecurrentlyofferover500APIsthatbusinesspartnerscan

usetobuildtheirownapplicationsandservices.ThedemandforAPI-basedservicesgrows,aswellasthevolumeofAPItransactionswhichisalreadyoursecond-largestdigitalchannelaftermobile.

ThethirdareaisAI.WeleveragebothconventionalandgenerativeAIcapabilitiestodrivetransformationacrosskeyfunctions,butIbelieveitsrolewillevolve

dramaticallynotonlytoenhancetouchpointsbutalsotoreshapefundamentally

howweoperate.

Whatdoesitreallymeantomodernizecorebanking?

Bankshavebuilttheirsystemsoverdecades,andmanycoreapplicationsdate

back20to30years.Overtime,thesesystemswerepatchedandupdated,but

todaythey’vebecomehardtounderstandandmaintain.Insomecases,banking

teamsnolongerfullyknowthebusinessrulesembeddedinthem.Somewerebuiltwithoutdatedtechnologiesorbypeoplewhoarenolongerwiththeorganization—

makingthemarisk,creatinginefficiencies,andholdingbackneededtransformation.

That’swherecorebankingmodernizationcomesin.It’saboutupdatingboththe

bankingcapabilitiesandthetechnologyplatformsthatsupportthem.Thegoalistobuildamoresustainablefoundationforthefutureandtosignificantlyimprovetimetomarket.Whenthebusinessneedsanewfeatureorproduct,deliveringitonamodern,consolidatedplatformismuchfasterandmoreefficientthanonlegacysystems.

AkbankGökhanGökçay,ExecutiveVicePresident,Technology

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Howdobanksdefinevalueincloudinvestments?

Whenwetalkaboutcloud,werefertoasetoftechnologiesthatenablemodular,cloud-basedarchitectures,typicallybuiltaroundadomain-drivenapproach.Inthissetup,eachcomponentisindependent,looselycoupled,andeasiertoscaleandmaintain.Thisstructureismuchbettersuitedtothedemandsofthedigitalworld,wherescalability,resilience,andspeedareessential.

Today,businessesexpectmultiplefeaturesandsolutionstobebuiltinparallel,

andmonolithicsystemslimithowmanyinitiativescanbedevelopedsimultaneously.Butwithamodular,cloud-basedapproach,bankscanworkondifferentcomponentssimultaneouslyandmoresafely,makingparalleldeliveryatscalenotjustpossible,

butsustainable.That’sthecorevalueofmovingtothecloud.

Conversely,whatfactorscanlimitcloud’svaluegeneration?

Everyorganizationfacesitsownsetofrisks.Ithinkakeyissueisriskaversion.

Whenteamsaretoorisk-averse,decision-makingslowsdown,andprocessesbecomeover-engineeredandlessefficient.Atthesametime,excessiveconsensus-seeking

candiluteoutcomesandcreateinefficiencies,astoomanyvoicescanwaterdowndecisions.Anothercommonissueisorganizationalsilos.Eachsilomayoperatewellindividuallybutoftenmissesthebiggerpicture.Asaresult,thesolutionsdeliveredtocustomersdon’talwaysfeelseamlessorfullyintegrated.

Howdoestopmanagementtracktechnologysuccessinamultiyeartransformationjourney?

Weevaluatesuccessthroughtwocomplementarylenses:technicalperformanceindicatorsandsharedbusinessoutcomes.Onthetechnicalside,onekeymetric

istimetomarket—howquicklywecandeliverameaningfulsolutiontocustomers.

Eightyearsback,ittookusaround9monthsonaverage.Threeyearsago,we

broughtitdownto5.6months.Today,ouraverageis3.7months,whichreflects

realprogressinhowefficientlyweoperate.Deliveryvolumeisanotherkeymetric.

With2,500technologyemployees,lastyearwedeliveredover630projectsandnearly10,000smallworkitems,eachclearlydefinedandcategorized.Overthepasttwoyears,ourprojectdeliveryvolumeincreasedby60%,whichisastrongindicatorofimprovedefficiency.

Thenthere’squality—wecloselytrackincidenttrends,responsetimes,and

servicelevels.Lastyear,ourcustomer-facingserviceavailabilitywasover99.97%,whichiswellaboveindustryaverage.Onthebusinessside,eachprojectorprogramistiedtosharedROImetrics—suchasthenumberofnewcustomers,productsales,orengagementtargets.ThesebusinessKPIsareagreedonupfrontandmeasuredpost-delivery,ensuringsharedaccountabilityforsuccess.

AkbankGökhanGökçay,ExecutiveVicePresident,Technology

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WhatdoesittaketoscaleAIacrosstheorganization?

Everybankwilltakeitsownpath,andourapproachtoAIadoptionevolvedaswegained

moreclarityonhowwewantedtouseAI.WithconventionalAI—suchasmachinelearningandearlierdeeplearningmodels—itwaseasiertounderstandthevalueandtrackprogress.

ButgenerativeAIbroughtadifferentkindofchallenge.Acoupleofyearsago,westarted

withadiscoveryphase:understandingwhatitis,itsstrengths,anditslimitations.SincewealreadyhadNaturalLanguageProcessing(NLP)-basedsolutions,wefeltwehada

goodfoundation.Weranworkshopswithbusinessunits,identifiedandprioritizeduse

cases,andimplementedseveral.

Thatinitialphasetookaround9to12monthsandtaughtusalot.However,tocreate

businessvalue,weshiftedtoamorestrategicapproachandidentifiedthreecoreareas

wheregenerativeAIcoulddeliversignificantimpact:operations,tostreamlineourextensive

back-officeprocesses;technology,tosupportthesoftwaredevelopmentlifecycle;andcustomerinteractioncenters,especiallyourcallcenterwheregenerativeAIcanenhance

bothagentsupportandcustomerexperience.

Today’sCIOsmustbestrategicpartnerstothebusiness,forgingstrongrelationshipsacrossunitsandleveragingtechnology

asacatalystforsustainablegrowth.

Tomeettheincreasingscaleandcomplexityoforganizationaldemand,wealsorestructured

ouroperations.TheinitiallycentralizedAIcentercouldn’tscalefastenough.Therefore,

weadoptedanextendedhub-and-spokemodelembeddingAIcapabilitiesacrossmultipletechnologyunitswhilekeepingelementsofcoordination—eachaccountableforidentifyinghigh-impactAIusecaseswithintheirrespectivedomains.

Wedidthesameonthebusinessside.DedicatedAIteamshavebeenestablishedwithin

eachofthethreestrategicbusinessareastodrivedomain-specificinnovation,andweworkcloselywiththemtodriveusecasesforward.Thenextstageisscalingbeyondthethree

strategicbusinessunitstotheentirebank.We’renowaskingallbusinessunitsandEVPs

toembraceAIwithintheirdomainsandformmultidisciplinaryAIsquads.Theseteamswill

besupportedbyourcentralAItechnologyhubs.Thisdecentralizedmodeliscritical—not

justtoscaleAIeffectively,buttoensureitbecomestrulyembeddedinday-to-daybusiness

operations.Asolelycentralizedstructurenolongerprovidesthescalabilityorresponsivenessrequiredforenterprise-levelAItransformation.

AkbankGökhanGökçay,ExecutiveVicePresident,Technology

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WhatistheroleofriskandcontrolfunctionsingoverningAIacrosstheorganization?

Traditionalmodels—suchasstatisticalandmachinelearningmodelstomanagecreditrisks—arealreadysupportedbywell-establishedgovernanceframeworks.Dedicatedteamsworkonspecificaspectssuchasmodeldevelopment,performancemonitoring,validation,andcalibration.Whiletheyoperateindependently,theyworkunderabroaderumbrellaofcreditriskmanagementpoliciestoensureobjectivityandcontrol.

Thereisalsoanotherstreamofactivitiesforenterprisemodelsusedinareassuchas

customerexperience,sales,andproductrecommendations.ThesefallunderourDataGovernanceOffice,whichoverseesbothdataqualityandhigh-levelmodelgovernance,whilerisk-specificmodelsremainundertheriskfunction’scontrol.WiththeadventofgenerativeAI,newgovernancechallengeshaveemerged,promptingustointroduce

our“AIManifesto”inwhichweoutlineprinciplessuchasexplainability,accountability,andrespectforhumanvaluesthatapplytoanyactivityacrosstheentirebank.ThissetsthefoundationforhowAIshouldbeusedenterprise-wide.Basedonthiswork,we’renowrefreshingthegovernancestructurestoensurethoseprinciplesareapplied

consistentlyacrossallunits.

IsSoftware-as-a-Service(SaaS)overratedintheeraofagenticAIandopensource?

Therealshiftisn’tjustaboutwhobuildsthesolutions—itstartswithhowcustomersinteractwithbanksandserviceproviders.Foryears,wetalkedaboutconversationalbanking,whereuserswouldspeaktotheirbankinsteadofusinganapp.Butitnevertrulytookoff—possiblybecausecustomersweren’tcomfortablediscussingfinancesoutloud,preferringprivacyontheirscreens.

GenerativeAIisnowredefiningthisdynamic.Whetherthroughtyping,writing,orspeaking,AIagentsaremakinginteractionmoreintuitive,fluid,andhuman-like.Accordingly,theprimaryinflectionpointliesinevolvingcustomerbehaviorandexpectations.

Thesecondisonthetechnologyside.AgenticAIisevolvingrapidly,andIbelieveitwillfundamentallytransformhowsoftwareisdevelopedandconsumed.This

maybewhyITcommentatorsstartedemphasizingthat“SaaSisdead”—becauseinsteadofstaticinterfaces,userswillinteractdynamicallywithAIagentsthat

actontheirbehalf.

Inthismodel,APIsbecomethebackbone,asagenticAIwillrelyonAPIstotrigger

services.Overtime,eventhatmayevolve—butinthenearterm,APIswillbecriticalforenablingAI-driveninteractionsinbankingandbeyond.WithagenticAI,itfeelslikewe’reenteringanewphasewherebusinesslogicisbeingembeddeddirectlyintothesoftwareitself.It’snolongerjustaboutbuildingtoolsforbusiness—AIistransitioningfromanenablingtooltoacoreoperationalcomponentofthebusiness.

AkbankGökhanGökçay,ExecutiveVicePresident,Technology

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IsAIredefiningthebalancebetweeninsourcingandoutsourcingITcompetences?

Weoutsourcesomestandardinfrastructureservicessuchasdevicemanagementand

endusersupport,butbeyondthat,mostofourtechnologyisinsourced.ComparedtootherEuropeanbanks,wehaveastronginternaltechteamhandlingthefullsoftwaredevelopmentlifecycle.Wedomanageourowntechnologystack,includingdatabases,middleware,and

applicationservers.

Whenitcomestobusinessapplications,weprefertobuildthemin-house.About35%ofourdevelopersareexternalpartnerswhoworkcloselywithus.Theypossessin-depthexpertiseinplatformsandframeworks,whichhelpsmaintainaconsistentandhomogeneoustechnologyenvironmentacrossthebank.Forstandard,non-differentiatingsystemssuchasERPorHR,wetypicallyadoptoff-the-shelfsolutions.Butforstrategicareas—suchascreditproducts

ordigitalonboarding—webuildthesolutionsourselvestoretaincontrolanddifferentiateourofferings.IntheAIworld,thingsaredifferent—someplatformsandsolutionsarehighlyadvanced,makingitdifficulttobuildeverythingin-house.That’swhywemayrelymore

onready-made,commoditized,ornichetoolsandplatforms.

Whatcharacterizesforward-lookingCIOs?

Bankingandtechnologyarenowinseparable.Thatmakesstrongtechcapabilities—andthe

peoplebehindthem—critical.Today’sCIOsmustbestrategicpartnerstothebusiness,forging

strongrelationshipsacrossunitsandlevera