In 2020 as part of an overall systems and operations review process, Deutsche Bank Securities Services announced the renewal of its partnership with SimCorp. The SimCorp Dimension platform will continue to support Deutsche Bank in delivering integrated fund services to its clients in the region. The ability to onboard new clients quickly, meet local market regulatory and compliance requirements and support multi-asset investment strategies were some of the compelling reasons for selecting the SimCorp Dimension platform to facilitate Deutsche Bank’s ambitious growth plans.
We spoke with Jeslyn Tan, former Managing Director & Global Head of Product Management, Securities Services, and Andrew Donnelly, Senior Executive Director/CIO at Deutsche Bank to understand how the markets and services are evolving in the region and how the SimCorp solution brings a competitive edge to the bank in the new disruptive world order.
How have fund administration services evolved?
Andrew: While stability, performance and data accuracy were seen as core requirements back in 2006, fund administration services have since transformed. Providers are challenged to deliver more value to the end client reflecting the increasing commoditization of the custody and fund administration services industry. In addition to integrated core functions, today’s investment firms demand flexible, sophisticated and differentiating end-client services at reduced costs.
We see a market trend where our clients are looking to move up the value chain and we want to provide an enhanced customer experience. We provide local market access covering over 30 locations directly and connect to over 100 markets through agent and hub services. Increasingly, and especially in some emerging markets, asset management firms are looking for a “one-stop shop” supporting custody, fund administration, registrar and transfer agency services. Our ability to meet these market demands contributed to our success in countries such as Indonesia. In addition, by linking Deutsche Bank’s cross -banking product offering including multi-asset strategies, we’re delivering a holistic and integrated solution to our clients. Our ambitions are to continue to broaden and enrich our range of services from middle office to risk and performance, trade processing, and compliance.
How has SimCorp supported Deutsche Bank in responding to market changes?
Jeslyn: In volatile times, actors tend to diversify their portfolios and need relevant information to support quick decision making. The SimCorp platform enables us to deliver a rich and customizable end-user experience with tailored reports, data offerings, APIs, back office solutions and much more as we support multi-asset investment strategies. The SimCorp solution brings cost efficiencies while enabling innovation which delivers unique benefits to our clients as well as meeting their business needs. From SimCorp’s integrated platform, Deutsche Bank offers bespoke data and tools to improve reporting capabilities for our clients facing increased compliance and risk regulations, which are often complex and localized.
What were the compelling criteria when reviewing the current technology infrastructure?
Andrew: Our objective was two-fold: to support our rapid expansion and to capitalize on new market opportunities while maintaining cost efficiency. Importantly, through its flexible configuration, the SimCorp solution delivers us a crucial competitive edge where we are able to be ahead of the curve when new local market regulations are introduced. This builds trust with our end-clients.