Canada’s Central 1 to transfer digital banking operations to Intellect Design Arena
Central 1, a Canada-based service provider for financial institutions, and Indian banking tech firm Intellect Design Arena have agreed on a deal that will see Intellect assume responsibility for Central 1’s digital banking operations.
The move comes after Central 1 announced plans in October “to wind down its digital banking business and transition clients to one or more alternative digital banking providers”.
Central 1, which also offers clearing and settlement, treasury, and critical payment services, explained in a statement at the time that the decision followed a “comprehensive strategic review of this business, concluding that the investment and innovation required to meet the needs of clients and sustain the company’s digital banking offering into the future would not be sustainable over the long term”.
The agreement with Intellect Design Arena, announced by the companies last week, will now see “Central 1’s Forge, MemberDirect, public website and mobile applications and product, along with digital banking engineering and service teams” transferred to Intellect, the companies say.
“Central 1 will continue to provide the technology infrastructure and related services under the agreement,” the two firms say.
Central 1 adds: “To ensure continuity for clients, Central 1 team members who support digital banking will join the Intellect team to operate Central 1’s digital banking software, and support clients as they transition to new digital banking platforms.”
Rajesh Saxena, CEO of Intellect Global Consumer Banking, says its deal with Central 1 aims to strengthen the fintech’s “presence further in Canada and North America”.
Last year, Intellect inked a seven-year agreement with Vancity to supply the credit union with its Contextual Banking Experience and Digital Engagement Platform solutions.