#Payment

Go-live of Sopra Banking Platform at Arion banki in Iceland

Jun 15, 2021
SBS

After the successful introduction of the Sopra Banking Platform at Landsbankinn and Islandsbanki, SBS (ex-Sopra Banking Software) announces the go-live with Arion Bank

Reykjavík, May 26, 2021 – SBS (ex-Sopra Banking Software), partner of choice for more than 1,500 financial institutions worldwide, and Reiknistofa bankanna (RB), Iceland’s largest IT banking system provider, today announced the go-live of Sopra Banking Platform at Arion Bank paving the way for a fully modernized banking platform for deposits and payments in Iceland.

It all started in 2015 when Landsbankinn and Islandbanki, two of Reiknistofa bankanna’s (RB) largest customers, launched an IT modernisation programme designed to build a new shared services platform, capable of connecting the traditional banking services offerings with new international standard banking services. After the successful go-live of Landsbankinn in 2017 and Islandsbanki in 2018, Arion Bank is now managing all their accounts and domestic payments using the Sopra Banking Platform as core banking system.

RB recognised the need to provide open, modern technology to its clients allowing them to accelerate innovation and increase the speed and effectiveness with which new products and services can be created. In the age of digital banking, this will allow clients of RB to provide a superior customer experience at a lower cost of ownership. With this new go-live, SBS (ex-Sopra Banking Software) is now delivering its software to the three largest banks in Iceland through its partner RB.

“We are proud to support Iceland’s largest banks in their digital transformation. After Landsbankinn in 2017, followed by Islandsbanki in 2018, this go-live is another important milestone in our long-term partnership with RB to modernize the banking landscape of Iceland. Sopra Banking Platform is now operating over 90% of domestic accounts as well as around 1.5 million domestic payments in real-time every day,” said Joël Saad, Executive Sponsor and Executive Vice President Retail Banking EMEA at SBS (ex-Sopra Banking Software).

Ragnhildur Geirsdóttir, CEO at Reiknistofa Bankanna said, “SBS (ex-Sopra Banking Software) established itself as a partner of choice when we initiated this project to modernize our banking infrastructure. SBS was able to meet our requirements in terms of security but also through the agility of their technological platform. This project is transforming the payment system for the entire Icelandic banking sector, managing costs, fostering local expertise, and ultimately developing new products and services.”

“We, at Arion bank, are thrilled with a successful migration of data and integration with Sopra banking software.  This modernizes the infrastructure for one of our core banking services which enables faster development and lowers cost”, said Styrmir Sigurjónsson, CIO at Arion Bank.

About SBS (ex-Sopra Banking Software) 
SBS (ex-Sopra Banking Software) is the partner of choice for more than 1,500 financial institutions worldwide. 
The rich variety of our solutions, the strength of our conviction and our passion for innovation enable us to support our clients on a daily basis and in their future projects, as well as in their goals regarding financial inclusion. 
Our customers, based in over 80 countries around the world, benefit every day from our technologies and software, as well as the expertise of our 5,000 employees.  SBS (ex-Sopra Banking Software) is a subsidiary of the Sopra Steria Group, a European leader in consulting, digital services and software development. With more than 46,000 employees, the Sopra Steria Group generated a turnover of €4.3 billion in 2020. For more information, follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter & Instagram or visit www.soprabanking.com

About Reiknistofa Bankanna
Founded in 1973, Reiknistofa bankanna (RB) is an IT service provider for Icelandic financial institutions. In 1987 RB launched its own real-time payment system, first of its kind in the world, the same as is now being replaced with the Sopra Banking platform for deposits and payments. As a team of 160 employees, RB also runs a number of other core banking multi-tenant solutions used by most of the Icelandic banks. RB is jointly owned by all the major commercial banks in Iceland along with the Icelandic Savings Bank Association and payment card processors in Iceland.

About Arion Banki
Arion Bank focuses on developing long-term relationships with its customers and is a market leader as a provider of cutting-edge and modern banking services. The Bank is listed on the main lists of Nasdaq Iceland and Nasdaq Stockholm.Arion Bank provides services to households, corporates and investors and strives to meet the needs of customers requiring a diverse range of financial services. The Bank has three business segments: Retail Banking, Corporate & Investment Banking, and Markets. The service offering is further augmented by the subsidiaries Stefnir and Vörður. Stefnir is one of the largest fund management companies in Iceland, and Vörður is the fastest growing insurance company in Iceland, providing non-life and life insurance.

Press Contacts:
SBS (ex-Sopra Banking Software) : Stéphanie Decortiat, +33 (0)6 71 56 43 10, [email protected]