IDC Insights: Shaping Resilient Financial Services

As new technologies like generative AI emerge, the next generation of business models and workflows for the financial institutions has evolved to drive new value. We speak to Alice Ting, Global Head of BFSI, Telstra International, to understand how this is affecting the banking and financial industry. Alice is a seasoned international executive with over three decades of experience in the ICT industry.

Hello, Alice. We understand that a study was done to find out what financial institutions are concerned with currently. Can you tell us more?

Well, we collaborated with IDC Financial Insights to analyse the global technology trends with on-the-ground industry sentiment to produce the "Shaping Resilient Financial Services for the Digital Future" Info Snapshot. This concise and actionable document delves into the pressing challenges and new technology benchmarks as regional financial institutions strive to redefine resilience and foster innovation in the era of AI.

In the report, it says that investing in connectivity, trust, and infrastructure is the key to unlocking further potential of AI. Can you break this down for us? Let’s start with connectivity.

Customers now expect personalised, instant services whether it is loan approval, trade execution, payments or financial advice. That is where real-time connectivity comes in. It is not just about speed; it is about scaling seamless, personalised experiences that resonate with customers. Look at Project Nexus in Southeast Asia, an initiative aimed at enhancing cross-border payment systems, to understand just how critical fast and scalable networks have become. Financial institutions that can scale their networks while ensuring high-speed data flow will lead the way in delivering what customers want, when they want it. And may I add that Telstra has one of Asia-Pacific's largest subsea cable networks to meet this demand, ensuring robust and reliable connectivity across the region.

That’s great! What about Trust?

As open finance and use of AI become the norm, financial institutions must protect their critical infrastructure and sensitive data while being transparent about how it is used. Regulators have also been tightening standards increasingly, as seen from the new guidelines from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the Hong Kong government’s proposal for enhancing cybersecurity for critical infrastructure. All these policies emphasise customer protection. Not only must financial institutions establish high standards of infrastructure and data protection to defend against external cyberattacks, but they must also address emerging internal threats such as data poisoning, where corrupted or malicious data is injected into training datasets to disrupt AI models and produce false outcomes. The message is clear: trust is not optional—it is essential for all financial service providers.

Lastly, on AI-ready infrastructure?

With AI being increasingly deployed in financial services, having the right infrastructure, including scalable hybrid clouds, edge computing, and real-time processing, is essential.

A key reason for infrastructure investment is the necessity of data in training AI models. This brings about a phenomenon known as data gravity. Essentially, large datasets attract smaller datasets and applications, creating a ‘gravitational pull’ that draws in more data. As data accumulates in one location, it becomes increasingly challenging and costly to move.

Institutions that want to position themselves for success across diverse markets will need to have a robust and scalable infrastructure strategy to manage the growing AI workloads and AI-driven projects.

What’s next for the BFSI industry?

As the industry continues to evolve, embracing new technologies and innovative solutions will be key to staying competitive.  For example, Telstra has recently partnered with a major European financial institution to redesign their digital infrastructure resilience that resulted in significant cost savings and positioned the institution for future technological advancements and strategic growth.  

We empower global financial institutions to build scalable networks, safeguard sensitive data, and implement AI-ready infrastructure with our expertise in connectivity, zero-trust security, and digital infrastructure to gain speed and competitive edge in a world of economic uncertainty.  

Download the IDC Info Snapshot "Shaping Resilient Financial Services for the Digital Future" to gain deeper insights and learn how your organisation can stay ahead in the rapidly evolving financial landscape.