New research finds financial services organisation are using more cloud-based services than ever before though skills shortages and security concerns are inhibiting progress

UK financial services organisations are rapidly embracing new cloud-enabled technologies to transform the ways they operate and serve their customers, although skills shortages, security barriers, and worries about compliance are standing in the way of the digital transformation of the sector. Although 78 per cent of financial services business have a digital transformation strategy, 64 per cent stated that they lack the skills they need for successful implementation. In addition, well over half (58 per cent) agreed that their cloud security posture needed to be improved and a similar proportion (52 per cent) were not confident in their ability to meet their regulatory obligations. These are the key takeaways from a new research report launched today by the Cloud Industry Forum (CIF) and Aryaka.

The research surveyed 250 IT and business decision makers at UK-based financial services organisations with 50 or more employees and IT procurement budgets averaging £8 million per year. The research found that in the financial sector the majority are currently laying the foundations for a smarter, safer and hyperconnected future. 96 per cent currently use cloud-based services and the vast majority (87 per cent) expect to increase their usage over the next 12 months. Moreover, within three years, the amount spent on cloud infrastructure (18 per cent) is set to surpass that spent on on-premise (11 per cent) as financial services businesses decommission legacy technologies and embrace new more innovative ways of working.

Commenting on the findings, Ian McEwan, senior vice president of international sales at Aryaka, said: “This research demonstrates that now is a crucial time for the UK’s financial services sector to move to the cloud. With cloud spend set to surpass that of on-premise infrastructure in the next three years, how they achieve this is more relevant than ever and it is critical that the move to the cloud does not compromise security, regulatory and compliance requirements. The technology choices and partnerships UK financial services organisations make now will build the foundation for a secure future as they digitally transform and move legacy infrastructure to the cloud.”

Aryaka’s global managed SD-WAN service offers enterprises of all types, financial institutions included, the required operational simplicity, application performance optimization, security, multi-cloud connectivity, and visibility for successful WAN transformation.

Alex Hilton, CEO of the Cloud Industry Forum, added: “Financial services are clearly aware of the need for digital transformation, are rightly enthusiastic about the opportunities new digital technologies can deliver, and are using more cloud-based and digital services than ever before. This shift towards placing a greater reliance on trusted third parties is freeing up IT teams to focus on activities that can deliver comprehensive business change. However, it’s important that these changes are underpinned by a rock-solid foundation of security, and that financial services have the right skills and partners in place to support their ongoing transformations – and the research confirms there’s work yet to do on that front.”

For more information, and to download the full report, Cloud in Financial

Services – the next generation, visit: https://info.aryaka.com/cloud-in-financial-services-sector-cloud-industry-forum-report.html

About Aryaka
Aryaka delivers the #1 fully-managed, end-to-end global SD-WAN service for the cloud-first era. Our unique technology integrates multi-cloud connectivity, application optimization, security, last-mile management and visibility into an SLA-driven OPEX-only solution that provides unmatched agility and improved TCO for the global enterprise.

https://www.aryaka.com/

About the Cloud Industry Forum
The Cloud Industry Forum is a not-for-profit membership driven trade body established in 2009 as a direct response to the evolving supply models for the delivery of cloud based software and IT services.

Under the direction of our members, CIF has three priorities:

  1. Create a platform to discuss, engage and partner within the cloud supplier community to ensure thought leadership and market direction. We do this through regular members meetings, media and customer events, whitepapers and market research – an example of the latest Digital Transformation report can be found here.
  2. To drive a common and public level of transparency about the capability and substance of Cloud Service Providers through a process of self-certification to an EU recognised Code of Practice. This Code of Practice enables CSPs to present their proposition as trusted suppliers whilst raising their credibility and brand which are all publicly accessible via the CIF website.
  3. Acknowledging the digital skills gap, CIF has built a Professional Membership program enabling IT professionals to see best practice of cloud adoption. Following a Cloud Adoption Roadmap, users and suppliers can enhance their skills and achieve Professional Certification via an online training process.

Visit the website at: http://www.cloudindustryforum.org/

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