Standard Chartered Bank on Tuesday opened its global business services centre in Bengaluru to deliver support, client due diligence and advisory services for corporate and institutional banking customers using the latest technologies in data, robotics and software development.
“The centre in Bengaluru will also house the bank’s global centres of excellence in specialised areas including data analytics, anti-money laundering, financial crime surveillance and financial control,” Kwan Chee Sun, Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Business Services Private, said.
“This will enable the bank to achieve numerous benefits including efficiency gains and economies of scale in transaction monitoring, centralised client due diligence and the co-location of specialised risk management professionals,” Mr. Kwan said.
The Bengaluru centre will complement Standard Chartered’s existing GBS centres in China, India and Malaysia which collectively provide employment opportunities to 19,000 people. “Over the next few years, the bank expects to have 30% of GBS employees based in Bengaluru – doubling the current headcount,” he said.
The centre is a part of the bank’s strategy to invest $3 billion over three years in technology and systems which it announced in 2015.
Zarin Daruwala, CEO, Standard Chartered Bank, India, said: “As we move towards deeper digitisation, people who form a part of the technology-underpinned value chain will play an increasingly leading-edge role in shaping the banking and financial services landscape.”
As a network, Standard Chartered’s GBS centres in China, India and Malaysia are capable of managing complex, large-scale, cross-border activities that keep the bank running seamlessly while ensuring clients globally are receiving reliable and secure banking services using state-of-the-art digital technology, according to a statement from the bank.
Other capabilities that are setting the benchmark for the banking industry include cyber security, cyber forensics, regulatory compliance and banking operations, according to the statement.
The bank has also started a pilot project last month to re-skill staff, Mr. Kwan said. The bank has an attrition rate of 16%. “The aim is to retrain and retain,” he said.
