At 2i, we’re proud to support GB Bank, a trusted go-to lender for property investments, in its mission to foster community growth and development. The Bank is dedicated to providing SME property developers and investors with the essential financing to drive meaningful change in communities.
As a trusted partner, we delivered comprehensive quality assurance, compliance services, and innovative software solutions to ensure smooth operations, thereby enabling the Bank’s IT and business to comply with regulatory requirements.
The brief
As a newly established entity requiring complex infrastructure for efficient operation, a key priority was ensuring that GB Bank’s various technology platforms were seamlessly integrated within a strong quality assurance framework. This partnership not only helped the Bank to obtain its Banking licence but also helped them run the Bank and deliver products to end customers.
When you are working with multiple software providers, it’s all too easy for accountability and ownership to fall between the cracks. Each has their own quality standards and governance and, when they hand over their part of the system, there can be a risk of no-one ‘owning it’ if something goes wrong – an assumption that it is another party’s fault when there is no single entity taking responsibility.
That’s where 2i came in.
GB Bank was recommended to us through word of mouth by a client who had personally worked with us and wholeheartedly endorsed our capabilities. They knew we could deliver what GB Bank needed.
Joining the dots
2i’s role was to build quality standards for the Bank that the various platforms already in play would have to adhere to, establishing governance and controls and enabling GB Bank to consistently run a cohesive and compliant Banking platform.
The Bank chose to operate with a ‘platform as a service’ (PaaS) model, which means that they rely on multiple (five) third-party software-as-a-service (Saas) providers to deliver their deposit and lending products.
Paul Colam, Head of Operations at GB Bank says:
“Obviously governance was a key part of 2i’s Statement of Works on this project, but we really appreciated them proactively exploring other avenues that were out of scope. We took their observations on board and implemented positive changes as a direct result.”
Strategic partners
Beyond our brief to help GB Bank establish its foundational ‘Build the Bank’ strategy, we were engaged to develop its ‘Run the Bank’ strategy, focusing on maintaining high-quality standards and meeting customer expectations as the Bank expanded.
Paul continues,
“We were really impressed with 2i’s strategic thinking. They went beyond the scope of their brief, proposing further efficiency improvements including automation solutions and optimised data management processes that saved us a substantial amount of money.”
In this engagement, we acted as a key link between the technology and business teams, helping to translate complex technical language into terms that everyone could understand. This allowed us to ensure everyone was on the same page and working towards the Bank's goals. GB Bank trusted us to be their “eyes and ears,” reviewing the planning and deliverables from various third-party suppliers and providing clear, actionable recommendations that they could use to make informed decisions.
We also worked alongside the Bank’s internal team, guiding them in building long-lasting quality assurance (QA) practices. Our aim was to help them develop a QA approach that would support smooth operations and keep costs in check for the long term.
Vinu Mukundan, 2i’s VP of Strategic Initiatives said:
"As a strategic partner, we ensured that GB Bank could successfully launch its products, focusing on creating a seamless experience for their end customers. Ultimately, our role was to help them establish a functioning Bank and, more importantly, deliver a smooth customer onboarding and Banking experience."
The results
2i provided the joined up, robust QA framework that GB Bank needed, delivering to strict deadlines and keeping to a tight budget.
- Zero customer complaints
- No critical technical issues
- No areas for improvement identified during audit
We collaborated closely with GB Bank’s stakeholders and suppliers, actively working to identify risks and mitigate potential issues before they could negatively impact the project. Our comprehensive approach to quality assurance made a significant contribution to the success of GB Bank’s platform.
The proactive User Acceptance Testing (UAT) we conducted, to verify business processes, ensured that all systems were aligned before they went live. Its success is borne out of the fact that, when they launched, GB Bank received zero customer complaints and suffered no critical technical issues.
Another significant achievement was the ‘quality gates’ we implemented. Acting as the entry and exit criteria for all PaaS providers’ deliverables, it meant that all releases met their quality requirements. This prevented potentially costly reworks and delays.
We also represented the Bank during a third-party audit. The audit concluded with no areas for improvement identified by the auditors, highlighting the exceptional work completed through the partnership. This outcome has put the Bank in a strong position to secure funding for future growth.
Dharmendra Bhatia, 2i’s Testing Manager, comments,
“It was incredibly satisfying working on this project with GB Bank. They were receptive when we challenged them, along with our recommendations about shifting their areas of investment, which directly led to them making huge cost savings.”
Paul comments:
“We didn’t want the 2i team to leave! They’ve been such a fundamental part of our launch, and they have embedded key processes post-launch to keep us running smoothly and enabling us to deliver a high level of customer experience. We couldn’t have done it without them!”
Vinu Mukundan, 2i’s VP of Strategic Initiatives, says:
“2i enjoyed a fantastic and collaborative relationship with GB Bank. They made us feel very welcome and regarded us as a valued partner, respecting us as an integral part of their team. We’re looking forward to supporting them again in the future.”
Our experience in seamless technology integration and compliance has proven to be a valuable asset for startups in regulated industries. Our work with GB Bank is a clear example of how we can help ensure smooth operations while maintaining strict regulatory adherence. As startups face increasing complexity in their launch programmes, we remain committed to offering the support and expertise needed to navigate these challenges. We're ready to assist other businesses as they embark on their own journeys, providing solutions that are tailored to their specific needs in regulated environments.