The platform is an original, custom client’s solution. It has a web and a mobile versions allowing you to buy, sell contracts, place stop-loss final orders, use leverage, etc.

Challenges

• Extensive Technology Stack – the platform uses a variety of technologies and tools that are connected via dozens of small APIs.
• Conducting tests at unit level is not possible.

Software development

Web and mobile platforms use a common API and integrate with different services via dozens of smaller APIs. In August 2021, our first .NET developer joined the project to rewrite outdated API connections into newer microservice technologies. The Inetum specialist also carried out tasks that require programming in pairs, which fosters development of a high-quality code.

Automated testing

After a successful start of the collaboration, automating testers from Inetum joined the project.

TECHNOLOGY

Read on to discover how Banking-as-a-Platform, Open Banking, RegTech, Artificial Intelligence and Big Data are revolutionizing the FinTech sector.

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The client also needed support in creating test concepts and test cases based on user stories. Our testers outlined a test concept and suggested using Python and Robot Framework for automated testing, which would then be integrated into cloud-based tools for Continuous Integration and Continuous Development (CI / CD). 

Benefits for the client

• Modification of C# code in the old technology
• Modification of stored procedures based on the new table structure in SQL Server,
• API review and deletion of unused connections in consultation with other specialists engaged in the project,
• Creating test concept and running automated tests

Backbase is a Dutch FinTech and the provider of an engagement banking platform (EBP) streamlining online financial operations, which is used by over 120 banking institutions around the world. The Backbase solution is globally recognized as a frontrunner by leading analyst companies: Forrester, Ovum and Celent, and is currently developing intensively on foreign markets. Apart from its headquarters in Amsterdam, the FinTech company has branches in Great Britain, United States, Mexico, Singapore to name a few. Next to these regional HUBS Backbase set out to set up an R&D center in Poland, Krakow. Backbase’s goal was to build teams in a new location within the shortest possible time, and therefore they were looking for an IT nearshoring partner. Inetum was the standout choice.

The client’s system

Backbase provides a flexible engagement banking platform which enables financial institutions and banks to create web and mobile applications tailored to their needs without interfering with existing transaction systems. Digital Banking and Digital Sales are the main trends in the increasingly digitized banking world and a response to greater customer needs in the field of UX and mobile banking. Thanks to the Backbase platform, banks’ customers can use the application on any device; what is more, thanks to integration with other innovative digital solutions offered by FinTech providers, they are also able to use additional services.

The challenge

• Opening a development center in Krakow and fast onboarding of Back-End, Front-End, mobile development teams and automation testers
• Experience in the field of FinTech and banking to ensure high financial services security standards
• Remote implementation of the project and the possibility of joining other teams
• Upscaling the teams in terms of further cooperation

Solution

From the very start of building the Development Center, Inetum played a significant role in accelerating the growth in both areas – R&D and Professional Services.

Engineering Manager

Initially, 15 people from Inetum joined Backbase’s teams: Front-End, Back-End (Java), mobile developers, QA engineers and a Scrum Master. After eight months of cooperation, 40 specialists were already involved in two teams: R&D Digital Sales and Customer Success. Next, as the cooperation developed, our backend developers provided support for R&D Digital Sales team.

As part of Customer Success, we provide support for mobile developers, and the R&D team develops new modules of the Backbase Engagement Banking platform – Java developers work only on new functionalities, using the latest proven technologies, such as Java 11, AWS cloud, Spring Boot and Kubernetes. The projects are based on a microservice architecture which facilitates product management and the implementation of changes in functionalities. Inetum’s solutions are implemented by dedicated teams on the client side. Developers work based on agile methodology, independently selecting technologies and tools used in projects, and QA engineers take care of the quality of functionalities. The code of the developed application has almost 100% unit test coverage.

Benefits for the client

• Support of the best Java developers in Poland (according to the Clutch 2020 ranking)
• Quick response to the need to scale teams
• An independent and mature competence team
• Delivery Manager and Business Development Manager who coordinates the activities on the provider’s side
• A dedicated project website, helping to promote and build Backbase’s image on the new Polish market

What’s next?

One year after cooperation began, the client decided to entrust us with building another team – R&D Trade Banking. After R&D Digital Sales and Customer Success, it will be the third team working for Backbase on the Inetum side.

“We treat Inetum consultants the same way we treat our own employees. Simply they make up one team, working together on a daily basis”

• Poland – a proven destination for FinTech projects
• Support for innovation: FinTech Poland – Financial Innovation Foundation
• Intensive development of the payment sector and respected providers: BLUE MEDIA, PayU and BLIK (Polish Payment Standard)
• Warsaw has been ranked 12th in Europe and 1st in Central and Eastern Europe in the Global Financial Center Index (GFCI) ranking, which examines the competitiveness of financial centers
• Krakow’s vast investment potential: a friendly academic and business environment for the development of greenfield projects

Read more: Why is it worthwhile outsourcing IT services to Poland 

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Apple for Business

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The need

Our new client is a global FinTech which helps customers around the world to send money securely to over 130 countries thanks to its innovative solutions. The company employs approximately 1000 employees, of which over 200 use Apple devices. Managing a mixed IT infrastructure in an organization requires dedicated solutions. Additionally, safety and reliability are crucial in the finance sector. The company decided to move from the existing EMM class tool to the Jamf Pro system.

Challenges

• Implementation in cooperation with two IT departments – in London and Krakow
• Remote project implementation

Scope of the work

Inetum’s Apple administrators know the specifics of the FinTech sector and have completed numerous implementations and training for clients from the banking industry.

The project they implemented included the sale of licenses, implementation of the Jamf Pro system and migration from the existing EMM-class tool. To carry out the migration, Inetum’s administrators employed an original solution. The project ended with training for client’s administrators, for whom the system will be able to efficiently manage over 200 Apple devices in the organization.

Benefits for the client

Nest Bank focuses on security and supporting individual clients as well as micro-enterprises in the scope of its operations. The bank delivers financial solutions that ensure its customers get a sense of security. Business data analysis tools used by financial institutions should play a similar role as data protection and compliance where strict security standards are key.

The aim of the project carried out by Inetum was to implement a Business Intelligence tool ensuring maximum security of the data and providing a solution that would facilitate everyday work with data. The tool was to be simple and possible to use in several departments by users with different levels of technical skills. An additional benefit was to unburden IT specialists from the tasks related to preparing data and ad hoc reporting.

The challenge

• Meeting the highest data security standards.
• Due to the specificity of the project, it was not possible to use cloud solutions.
• The tool was to be intuitive and easy to use.

Solution

At Inetum, we have over 10 years of experience in implementing projects for clients from the financial industry, which means that we understand the needs and requirements of the banking sector. Thanks to this, our Business Intelligence specialists could offer the best solutions and support the client in making the final decision.

After cooperative analysis, the client finally decided on Microsoft Power BI Report Server, which meets all the client’s requirements.

• Power BI Report Server is an implementation of Power BI running as part of a local reporting server, and it is fully controlled by the IT department.
• Power BI, on the other hand, is an intuitive reporting application that allows for the easy integration of data from various sources and building interactive and highly efficient reports.
• The Power BI system is a Microsoft tool that guarantees strict security standards – including for clients operating in the most demanding sectors, such as the banking industry.

Summary

Thanks to an in-depth analysis of the usage scenarios conducted during sessions dedicated to architecture, we offered a cost-effective licensing solution and supported the client in purchasing the necessary licenses and installing servers. After the implementation, we also conducted training for the bank’s business employees and IT administrators – a total of 30 people. The result of the implementation of Microsoft Power BI is significantly greater awareness among bank employees at every level in the area of data and options for using it. This is a very important aspect of successful implementation. Providing widespread access to data and reports in the long term can often be considered the most important effect of choosing a modern reporting platform.

Business benefits

Microservice architecture is most often applied in large and complex IT systems which require multidirectional development. Within a single, integrated system, independent applications function in support of particular departments, functions, or business processes. Microsites are independent of business and technology, which means they can be developed in parallel by different design teams. There is no need to make changes in other areas in order to introduce a new feature in one area, so potential problems resulting from the development of individual modules do not interfere with the operation of the system as a whole.

One advantage of such an approach is the possibility of introducing cutting-edge technological solutions in individual microservices – without the massive workload required to adapt the entire system to these changes at once. This solution, if necessary, can then be used in other areas of the system, but may also be limited to only one microsite.

This model also helps with the organization of the work done by developers – for each microservice there is a different multi-person project team. The main advantage of this solution is the clear division of responsibility – each software development team is responsible for the entire development of their microservice. This provides a lot of independence, but it also means responsibility, and an element of competition also arises – every team wants their microservers to be the best, and to have their solutions used in other areas of the system.

“The system is designed and developed so as to be as universal as possible: at this point the target client is operating in the B2B financial industry, but expects – after minor modifications – to be able to use the same tools for any other insurance service”.

The JCommerce software development team

German IT Consulting Company, which specializes in consulting services and mediation between customers and IT service providers, turned to JCommerce with a proposal to undertake a project related to the implementation of several microservices. The effect of JCommerce’s quick response was the creation of the first strong team of specialists required to complete the pilot project. Its members included a project coordinator, Scrum masters, an architect, a business analyst, front-end specialists, Java developers and testers.

The success of the first project resulted in the development of cooperation and the creation of new teams, which were entrusted with work on three microservers, responsible for the following areas of the company’s operations:

• contracts,
• billing/accounting
• configuration and negotiation of contracts.

Currently the software development teams consist of a total of >25 JCommerce specialists, with plans to further enlarge them going forward. We are ready to take on any insurance software development you have and we strive to be the best company to take on such projects.

Organization of the project

The people responsible for the project came from three different companies. It was the task of the IT Consulting Company specialists to organize the work in such a way that each team performs their tasks efficiently within the time allocated in the schedule. On the target client side, several Business Experts were involved in the project – each responsible for a separate microservice. These people presented needs, meaning what the expectations are in terms of the system, and what functions are required in a given area. However, they were not technically-minded, so they were unable to present the technological means of fulfilling expectations. The JCommerce teams worked with business analysts to translate client requirements into technical capabilities and business realities.

Teams were largely self-reliant using Scrum methodology, so all the recommended events were organized (Daily, Grooming, Sprint planning, Estimation, Demo), generic meetings of all parties involved were content driven.

Cooperation was also facilitated by JCommerce’s flexibility in terms of the composition of the team, such as when more specialists were required, or when it was necessary to organize replacements due to illness or change one technology to another, as and when such changes were needed.

Communication and the exchange of information

The cooperation between the three parties involved, namely the target customer, the consulting company and the software development partner, is a very interesting aspect of collaboration. Due to the high level of complexity of the project, such cooperation must be based on efficient communication and trust, as well as a high degree of flexibility in communication and planning, without which working in such a model would be impossible.

The current flow of general technical information and the communication of announcements took place via email, while Skype was used ad hoc for voice and text communication. Dedicated channels were created with appropriate groups of people (e.g. the whole team, developers, a separate channel for analysts to contact the end user, etc.), thanks to which messages reach the right people, saving time for the remaining team members.

“There are just a minimum of periodic meetings – because a high amount of artificial meetings are inefficient and the focus lies on an open daily communication. When things need to be discussed, team members just call each other on Skype. Collaboration is based on trust: the team can offer solutions and technologies, which the customer usually agrees with. This brings with it a sense of great responsibility for the project, and consequently, great dedication from our team members to the tasks which they have been entrusted with.”

In addition to general tools, particular team members utilized specialized solutions for specific communication purposes, such as:

• JIRA – to manage tasks and requirements and implement the Scrum process, and to specify requirements;
• Stash – for storing and versionizing code, as well as technical specifications (e.g. REST query format, etc.);
• TestLink, Xray – for storing testing procedures;
• Confluence – to create documentation and general information for the project.

Business benefits

• On the end user side, it is primarily the access to high-level specialists who are deeply committed to the task, so that they can carry it out mostly by themselves
• The technology partner’s (JCommerce) specialists bring their experience and knowledge of the latest solutions, while also utilizing the expertise of the consulting partner (German IT Consulting Company), and gain knowledge of the target client’s industry
• German IT Consulting Company has the opportunity to cooperate with a committed technology partner who is able to achieve ambitious project targets to deliver a fully satisfactory system to the target client

About a client

One of Germany’s leading consulting firms specializing in the strategic management of digital transformation.