Alior Bank in Poland, in cooperation with Teradata and Microsoft, migrated the Data Warehouse to the public cloud. Thanks to integration with the Microsoft Azure analytical environment, the Bank plans to significantly increase the efficiency of analytical processes, including artificial intelligence and machine learning. The implementation process took a record six months. This is another step in the implementation of the “Bank for Every Day, Bank for the Future” strategy, one of the pillars of which is technological development.
“When implementing the public cloud at Alior Bank, our main goal was to increase efficiency and competitiveness and respond even faster to customer needs. Analyzing their digital activities generates large amounts of data that require advanced computing power and tools available only in the public cloud. Thanks to the speed of information delivery and the readiness of the cloud infrastructure “immediately”, we will be able to implement projects more efficiently, introduce changes, and increase user satisfaction,” – says Mariusz Kłys, Director of the Data Department at Alior Bank.
Thanks to data migration to the public cloud, Alior Bank could easily integrate with the latest technologies and services offered by Microsoft Azure and Teradata VantageCloud. This step is the first stage of a project implemented at the Bank, the aim of which is to modernize the current data architecture and build a modern ecosystem of applications supporting the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques based on cloud solutions.
“The public cloud is a safe and reliable solution for organizations operating in highly regulated sectors. It meets safety standards and ensures compliance with all legal regulations. Additionally, data centers located in Poland allow organizations to meet data residency requirements and ensure the highest stability of services and minimal delays in their operation. Thanks to this, businesses can introduce innovations that allow them to respond to market needs and change customer expectations,” – says Tomasz Dreslerski, Director of the Enterprise Segment in the Polish Branch at Microsoft.
The use of the cloud allows for virtually unlimited data scaling, enabling the launch of new initiatives in data processing and analytics, without the need for long-term expansion of the infrastructure in the own server room.
“We completed the migration successfully, ensuring 100% availability of services provided by the warehouse during the data transfer process and when switching to the cloud ecosystem. The average efficiency of cloud warehouse processing has increased by 45%, and access to additional power allows us to improve this result depending on business needs. Additionally, we have used a completely new solution for warehouse archive data, which is only available in the public cloud. It allows for flexible management of the cost of storing large volumes of data without negatively affecting how they are shared,” – says Bogusław Zarzeczny, Director of the Data Analysis & Management Department at Alior Bank.
Cloud implementation also brings significant benefits in terms of data security. Teradata and Microsoft use the most advanced security measures, which gives Bank customers confidence that their data is properly protected. Migration also enables automatic software updates without the need for intervention by banking specialists, which ensures ongoing system protection. At the same time, thanks to the automatic ability to transfer the data processing center to another region in the event of a failure, the Bank gains greater resilience.
“Migration of the Data Warehouse to the public cloud required a fundamental change in the IT infrastructure. Efficient and secure connection to the cloud environment (Landing zone) in two Microsoft Azure regions is the transformation of the architecture of our Data Centers to a hybrid model. It enables further, dynamic adoption of cloud computing services and monetization of data that we decide to process there,” – says Tomasz Fryc, Director of the IT Infrastructure & Cloud Computing Department at Alior Bank.
“We are pleased that we could help Alior Bank successfully transition to the Teradata VantageCloud solution on the Azure platform. By moving its data to the public cloud, Alior Bank gained the ability to easily integrate with the latest technologies and services offered by Microsoft Azure Cloud and Teradata VantageCloud, especially in the areas of advanced data analytics and artificial intelligence, to ensure quick response to business needs. The project emphasizes very close and trust-based cooperation between our teams at all levels of the organization,” – says Mariusz Wądołowski, Sales Director at Teradata.
Migration to the public cloud will also bring the Bank significant savings related to maintaining the Bank’s server infrastructure. It will reduce expenses on electricity for power and cooling, physical space for servers, and environmental administration costs. Moreover, the decision supports the ESG policy – cloud providers use green energy, which contributes to sustainable development and has a positive impact on the environment.
Source: the Bank’s press release dated March 19, 2024
