CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive

June 26, 2008

Implementation Investments

Commerzbank Drives Core Banking Processes With SAP

SAP AG today announced that Commerzbank, Germany's second largest bank, has successfully implemented the SAP for Banking solution portfolio in just nine months to centralize and optimize its business processes. Commerzbank has restructured its entire loans transaction business unit, setting up a "loans factory," which will process 1.2 million loans yearly, based on an SAP solution portfolio with enterprise-wide standardized and integrated processes. The high degree of workflow automation and shorter processing times with the integrated SAP® solutions enable the bank to realize significantly improved efficiency. Commerzbank joins a long list of global banking industry leaders relying on SAP solutions to manage their operations.

As a large bank with worldwide operations, Commerzbank turned to SAP software to provide a standard solution for core banking processes. A team comprised of experts from Commerzbank, Eurohypo, Eurohypo Systems and several SAP implementation partners rolled out the new systems in only nine months, replacing Commerzbank's former banking platform with SAP for Banking.

The existing SAP application for credit management deployed by Eurohypo, a subsidiary of Commerzbank, served as a model and basis for the new solution and adaptation. The "credit factory" technology platform went live on September 1, 2007. Today, the private mortgage loans business, currently with 600,000 contracts, is managed via SAP for Banking. The integration of consumer loans will follow in a next implementation step. Commerzbank's "loans factory" concept provides an integrated IT system for all areas of business, based on standard solutions and processes accounting for a high degree of integrated workflow automation. With SAP software, Commerzbank is able to serve multiple business organizations by a single software instance.

"Banks around the world are moving to a licensed software for core banking model for reasons of productivity, efficiency and agility," said Bart Narter, senior analyst, Celent. "About half of the top ten North American banks use a licensed software product for core systems, while in other regions internally developed systems predominate. We believe that banks will move to licensed systems globally in order to reduce development costs and deployment timelines."

Due to the integration of the solution with the balance-sheet and risk systems, Commerzbank has significantly increased its data quality, improved risk selection and provided more transparency across all borrower units. Employing standardized solutions and establishing automatic workflows can also significantly drive down costs. With SAP for Banking, Commerzbank is able to reduce both loans processing steps and processing times. The bank's customers will also benefit from the reduction of refinancing costs, risk-adjusted pricing and from the overall reduction of risk management costs.

"By implementing SAP software, we were able to remove the burdens brought on by our former loans platform and create a durable, efficient core banking solution," said Christian Weber, head of retail credit, Commerzbank. "We decided to go with SAP when we saw how the solution boosted performance at Eurohypo. We have now implemented automated loans processes with SAP solutions that have considerably improved the response time of each loan when compared to our old solution."

"Commerzbank is taking a giant leap forward in the 'industrialization' of its core banking operation thanks to standardized processes and workflows, bearing enormous potential for raising efficiency," said Thomas Balgheim, senior vice president, Global Banking Line of Business, SAP AG. "Banks must ensure their core business systems are durable for the future. Only through a flexible, adaptable solution can banks better manage future changes and products in the marketplace. We have been continuously enhancing SAP for Banking toward a service-oriented banking business process platform, in order to meet the requirements of global banks today and ensure a growth platform for the future."

About Commerzbank AG

Since taking over Eurohypo, Europe's largest institution specializing in financing real-estate and public-sector projects, Commerzbank has been Germany's second-largest bank and one of the leading banks in Europe. Its consolidated balance-sheet total stands at 616bn euros. Roughly 35,000 employees, 8,504 of them active outside Germany, look after more than 8 million customers worldwide. Commerzbank sees itself as an efficient provider of financial services for private and business customers as well as for small to medium-sized companies (Mittelstand), but it also serves numerous major corporates and multinationals. For each of its core target groups, it aims to be the 'best bank'.

About SAP for Banking

The SAP® for Banking solution portfolio provides banking-specific (transactional banking, CRM, risk management) and banking-relevant (financial accounting, human resources management, procurement) services and solutions created on a single enterprise SOA-enabled business process platform (BPP). With more than 600 customers in 60 countries worldwide, SAP for Banking provides an integrated set of tools and automated processes to manage every aspect of the front- and back-office banking environment -- from high-volume transactional banking processes and customer relationship management to financial accounting, cost controlling and profitability and risk analysis. Based on the open architecture of the SAP NetWeaver® technology platform, SAP for Banking helps companies expertly manage transactions and relationships across the institution to quickly identify and exploit market opportunities and easily tailor new products to the specific needs of individual customers. Additional information is available at http://www.sap.com/banking.

 

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