Introduction
Finanz Informatik (FI) is the leading IT service provider of the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe in Germany. It develops and operates digital banking solutions. FI’s range of services includes application development, the operation of IT infrastructures and data centers, as well as consulting, training and support. FI plays a central role in the digital transformation within the Savings Banks Finance Group and ensures that its customers benefit from modern, efficient IT solutions.
With over 4,820 employees, FI manages more than 114 million bank accounts and carries out around 188 billion technical transactions annually.
Challenges and Reasons for Implementing an Electronic Signature Solution
FI already had physical signature tablets with advanced digital signatures in use, but these processes were not sufficient to meet the written form requirement according to §126/§126a BGB for certain, highly regulated use cases. FI’s customers wanted legally binding, digital product sales without media breaks and manual reworking, which are often a source of error. In addition, processes on paper were more time-consuming and cumbersome. Therefore, a solution was needed that was also capable of providing a qualified digital signature (QES).
The challenges for Finanz Informatik were to find a provider who would make its solution available on premise. There were also some legal questions about the clearly regulated use cases. It was also important to find a signature provider that offers its solutions with white-labeling options so that the UX process is not disrupted.
Why did Finanz Informatik need an electronic signature solution?
In order to meet the needs of its customers for a legally compliant, holistic, secure and uncomplicated signature solution, FI turned to Namirial. Processes should be digitized efficiently and paperless in order to combine and drive sustainability and customer orientation. FI needed an electronic signature solution to operate across sales channels and enable flexible, location-independent handling of processes without having to accept media discontinuities. This solution is crucial to compete with other digital banks. Digital banks already offer their customers seamless and user-friendly online services that make the entire document processing process efficient. In order to remain competitive in this environment, the savings banks must also be able to offer similar digital services. An electronic signature solution allows them to elevate their services to a modern level that meets customer expectations for speed, convenience, and availability. This not only allows them to retain existing customers, but also to attract new customers who value fully digital and uncomplicated processing.
For example, loan applications, applications for an overdraft facility, documents for switching to the savings bank for individual or business customers and various insurance documents can be signed on site at the branch.
Via the Internet branch, i.e. with the help of a remote signature, documents in connection with an overdraft facility, various other loan documents and much more can be signed.
Since 2023, it has also been possible to sign with a digital signature: construction financing, credit card applications and interest rate extensions.
Why Namirial?
Namirial was the optimal choice for FI because the trust service provider meets all the relevant requirements for a multivendor signature solution. Namirial is manufacturer-agnostic, which means that it is possible to work flexibly with different systems and devices. In addition, Namirial offers omnichannel capability, so the solution can be used both stationary and medial. This enables the qualified electronic signature (QES) both at stationary terminals and via digital channels. Another advantage of Namirial is the ability to provide electronic signatures with and without biometrics, which ensures additional security and flexibility. This makes Namirial the only vendor that meets all the necessary criteria for a comprehensive multivendor signature application.
