AI and security top Brazilian Banking tech priorities

Artificial intelligence (AI) and cyber security are among the top tech priorities for Brazilian banks, according to a new report.

The Brazilian Banking Federation (Febraban)’s annual study, published in partnership with Deloitte, also found that data analytics and data mining strategies are also key priorities for 78% of the participants.

As well as AI and cyber security, IT decision-makers that participated in the research mentioned public cloud (94%), big data (94%), process mining (78%), Internet of Things (75%), blockchain (67%) and quantum computing (50%) as part of their current priorities, reports JournalTime.

“It simply came to our notice then. It was the Brazilian banks, not the fintech or boot, which is at the forefront and continues to be at the forefront of global banking technology for the past three decades. Being digital, innovative and modern, and above all safe and reliable, has always been in the DNA of banks. We are not committed to that ”, says the president of FEBRABAN Isaac Sidney.

For the study, Febraban polled 24 banks through a questionnaire, representing 90% of the Brazilian banking industry, it claims. Some 34 executives took part in the qualitative research, the first of three phases of which were carried out between November and December 2021.

It is the 30th edition of the report. In 2021, of the total amount spent in IT by banks in Brazil last year, 10% went towards cybersecurity, the regulator found.

Other priorities cited by the executives participating in the study this year included the development of super apps or superstores (39%), data-driven financial advisory (35%), as well as branch transformation (30%) and WhatsApp-based transactions (26%).

In addition, focus on digital as the main relationship channel has been cited by 91% of those polled, while 87% claimed that customer demands in terms of digital channels prompted institutions to invest further on that front. Cultural transformation as a means to promote a digital shift has been cited by 78% of the banks as a priority.

Banks are seen as leading the way in their digital transformation journeys. In a recent interview with TechInformed, EY’s Errol Gardner explained: “If you look at that market, they face complexity in what they have, but they are putting significant investment into technology and the solutions that wrap around that. But there are still a lot of banks that are very much focussed on the traditional, local branch network, ways of working.”