FinArch

Financial Studio Compliance and Basel II implementation for Société Générale Private Banking Belgium

Brussels/Ghent – February 5 2008 – Financial Architects nv, an international provider of a Finance Resource Planning (FRP) platform for the finance industry, announced today that Société Générale Private Banking Belgium will implement Finarch’s Financial Studio to achieve Basel II compliance. 

FinArch’s Basel II solution, with integrated reporting functionality, computes the Basel II capital requirements, applies the appropriate national discretion parameters and submits the reports to the regulatory bodies. FinArch thus guarantees Société Générale Private Banking, ahead to the 2008 deadline, full and timely Basel II compliance to both pillar 1 and pillar 2. The Financial Studio solution gives the availability of automated calculation of the capital requirements for credit, operational and market risk, as an input to the pillar 1 COREP reports. Also pillar 2 compliance, including the calculation and reporting on interest rate, liquidity and concentration risks, is fully covered.

Société Générale Private Banking decided to appeal to Finarch for a solution for achieving Basel II compliance. Wim De Coen, Secretary-General, from Société Générale Private Banking testifies: “Initially, we did not feel much for outsourcing Basel II calculation. We expected it to be “easy” as we had managed to do for Basel I.”  Finarch’s demo’s with Société Générale Private Banking’s own business cases and figures, revealed the complexity, however, even for their business situation. “FinArch demonstrated a working product and comprehensive business and regulation knowledge that convinced us to use their product to automate our Basel II calculation and reporting with FinArch’s ‘Basel II.” Wim De Coen continues. “Moreover, we realised that the cost in time and resources to apply Basel II regulation without specialized software was quite above initial estimations. What we need is a 100% compliant solution that provides complete transparency and enough flexibility for us to manage our risk as appropriate to our business complexity and size. That is what FinArch’s Basel II offers us.”  Wim De Coen clarifies.

Frédéric Simons, VP Regional Development at FinArch, comments: Obviously, I am very pleased that Société Générale Private Banking has chosen to implement the Financial Studio compliance and Basel II Express. With this token of trust, SOCIÉTÉ GÉNÉRALE Private Banking has chosen for a solution which is so much more than a basic, rapid, short term compliance solution. Financial Studio eases the burden of regulatory reporting for financial institutions as it complies with the reporting requirements of central banks, monetary authorities, and other financial regulators as well as with the Basel II requirements.

FinArch has gained considerable experience in implementing Basel II solutions over the last three years. Whether based on a consolidated risk and finance Datawarehouse, or as a rapid delivery solution, FinArch offers reassurance to its customers that their regulatory obligation will be met.

Financial Studio has been rated by Gartner as one of the leading global solutions for Basel II. It is one of the few solutions available which has an integrated regulatory reporting tool. Financial Studio's Basel II solution is part of a broader solution offering more advanced functionality for capital management, accounting, reporting and financial MIS. Financial Studio uniquely combines finance and risk data in a single repository providing a strong solution for IFRS, RAROC, Economic Capital, General Ledger, Subsidiary Ledger and Trading Ledger.

About Société Générale Private Banking

Société Générale Private Banking is the private wealth management arm of the Société Générale Group. With over one hundred years of experience, they offer a complete and customised wealth management service for personal and professional assets. This can be provided by a lasting relationship based on the highest level of professionalism, in a climate of confidence and discretion.

Société Générale Private Banking has offices in 23 countries, primarily in Europe and Asia. The global reach and know-how of their teams can give the most sophisticated solutions to their clients, whilst ensuring that they benefit from the advantages of the key financial marketplaces. The clients can invest in the best conditions in various economic sectors, currencies and regions and seize all opportunities, wherever they may arise. 

Thanks to their international presence and belonging to one of the Euro zone’s main banking groups known for its expertise and capacity for innovation, a quality private client service that combines creativity and sophistication is offered.

Société Générale Private Banking has the most highly developed techniques in house developed by their financial planning / financial engineering teams for a variety of situations and projects regarding the clients’ wealth, such as preparation of an inheritance or protection of their assets. 

Société Générale Private Banking Belgium is a 100% Belgian Private Bank with an agency in all areas and the knowledge of the local market. But it is also 100% international.

www.sgpriv.be

FinArch (Financial Architects nv), with offices in the major financial centres worldwide, is a global value leader in providing a new generation of financial management software. The concept of the platform and the integrated approach of the different modules enable innovative financial institutions to quickly implement tactical solutions meeting the overall strategic objectives in financial reporting.

FinArch provides a unique blend of domain expertise, operational services, and technology solutions that accelerate and facilitate financial institutions’ ambition to implement a cost effective and reliable financial management platform.

For more details, please contact:

Frédéric Simons
VP Regional Development
Financial Architects nv
Verlorenbroodstraat 122
B-9820 Merelbeke
Belgium
tel:  +32 (0)9 272 64 10
e-mail:  press.office@finarch.com