IBM (IBM 8.25%) announced today that it has bought Expertus Technologies, a Montreal-based fintech. Expertus offers a payments-as-a-service solution that will enhance payments options in IBM's hybrid cloud.
"Financial institutions must balance greater demand for secure digital solutions while complying with rapidly evolving regulation," said Mark Foster, senior vice president for IBM Services. Foster added that the solutions from Expertus will enable financial institutions to innovate rapidly and adapt to evolving customer demands.
Much like IBM's purchase of Spanugo six months ago, this acquisition focuses on enhancing its capabilities for clients who operate in heavily regulated industries.
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Jacques Leblanc, CEO of Expertus, touted the synergies brought by the deal. "Expertus built an efficient and trusted financial services enterprise that in many ways was ahead of its time," said Leblanc. "Together with IBM, we now can offer businesses worldwide the benefits and security of seamless end-to-end financial transactions."
In an interview with Bloomberg, Shanker Ramamurthy, global managing partner for banking at IBM Business Services, said banks are spending $100 billion to update their technology and keep up with emerging fintech rivals. "Payments represent a very profitable part of their franchise, and they want to continue to ensure they hold on to and not see erosion in that business in this new digital-banking environment," Ramamurthy said.
Over 1,000 banks, credit unions, regulatory agencies, and other entities use the Expertus platform to process more than $50 billion in transactions daily. It is also one of the largest service bureaus of the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication.
With this move, Expertus joins the IBM Global Business Services division. This comes after Expertus had a previous alliance with IBM Payments Center Canada.
IBM did not disclose the financial terms of the deal.
