Bank Leumi entrusts entire data centre operations to Colt
Published by Make Do on November 19, 2010
The Swiss subsidiary of the Leumi Group, Bank Leumi Switzerland Ltd, has today announced it has selected Colt, Europe’s leading information delivery platform to host its entire data centre operations. The details of the agreement involve Colt supplying Bank Leumi with a range of services, including the provision of highly secure infrastructures as well as the necessary power supply and cooling systems, which offer high levels of availability. The project represents another milestone in the successful partnership between Bank Leumi and Colt.
Prior to the Colt solution, the private bank was operating its own production and backup data centres itself. However due to plans for a new banking centre in the pipeline, Bank Leumi opted to redesign its existing data centre infrastructure to meet the latest security standards.
With its combination of hosting and network connectivity services, Colt was able to offer a market leading solution with maximum resilience, meaning Bank Leumi can completely rely on the security and availability of its data. As part of the new IT infrastructure, the Colt hosting solution will provide capacity at two data centres in Zurich with different risk profiles, as well as high-speed fibre optic links as part of the IT infrastructure. As the IT facilities are housed at separate locations at the bank and the two data centres, the overall system will still be available even if there is a technical fault at one of the data centres.
The systems are maintained at a highly secure Colt data centre that is ISO 27001 certified, thereby ensuring that the very highest quality and security standards can be met. The second data centre is also an audit-compliant component of the banking solution, and is supervised by Colt in accordance with ISO 27001. At both data centres, system management support is provided in accordance with ITIL V3.
Bank Leumi had a number of key requirements that included the assurance that day-to-day business would not be affected by the outsourcing process. Colt and Leumi therefore devised a project plan to ensure that everything would run smoothly without any interruptions.
"We identified the efficiency levels we currently require from our data centres and then discussed these requirements with Colt. As a reliable service provider, Colt was able to advise us on multiple occasions, providing valuable expertise that did not favour a particular manufacturer, as well as offering solutions for a wide range of ICT services", says Ursula Brunner-Egli, COO of Bank Leumi (Switzerland) Ltd. "The process management solution offered by Colt was proof of its many years of experience. The IT outsourcing process was carried out while day-to-day business operations were still ongoing, and the whole project was completed smoothly and professionally. By working with Colt, we particularly benefitted from its well-founded expertise in the field, its consultation services and the professional way in which it implements solutions as a trusted partner."
"Bank Leumi is a leading name in the private banking industry that is entrusting us with its highly sensitive operations. This hosting solution puts Bank Leumi in a better position to focus on developing and expanding its core business relying on Colt’s information delivery platform. We offer our solutions at customised and transparent end-to-end service levels, meaning we can guarantee high standards when it comes to quality and performance. This allows us to supply our customers with not only highly differentiated, clearly defined integrated IT and communications solutions, but also an enhanced implementation process and a standardised operations concept", says Hans Jörg Denzler, Managing Director at Colt Switzerland.
At the heart of the project is a business process landscape operated in accordance with ITIL V3 on a fully audit-compliant software platform, including system management, monitoring, logging and the relevant reporting processes. Colt is also delivering dedicated high-speed connections that are physically and logically separate, and which are operated via its fibre-optic network. This approach ensures that a secure and direct connection is established between the IT infrastructures in the data centres and Bank Leumi.
About Colt
Colt is Europe’s leading information delivery platform, enabling its customers to share, process and store their vital business information. An established leader in delivering integrated networking and IT managed services to major organisations, midsized businesses and wholesale customers, Colt operates a 19-country, 25,000km network that includes metropolitan area networks in 34 major European cities with direct fibre connections into 17,000 buildings and 19 Colt data centres. In 2010, the Colt Data Centre Services business was launched to deliver innovative high quality modular data centres which are rapid to deploy and power efficient.
Colt is listed on the London Stock Exchange (COLT). Information about Colt and its services can be found at www.colt.net
About Bank Leumi
Bank Leumi (Switzerland) was founded in 1953 and employs some 140 people at its headquarters in Zurich and at a branch in Geneva. It also has representative offices in Israel. The bank primarily offers private banking services for private customers, including asset management mandates.
Leumi Switzerland is part of the Leumi Group, Israel’s largest bank with branches all over the world and assets under management of over USD 189 billion. In the first semester of 2010, the Group achieved a net yield of USD 324 million and a RoE of 11.5%. David Brodet is the Chairman of the Group, Galia Maor is the CEO and the Swiss bank is headed up by Amnon Zaidenberg.
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