Profile Software’s innovative solutions for banking and wealth industry

Profile Software is an international financial software provider that focuses on the banking and investment management sector, developing innovative and client-centric platforms for agile operations. Kostas Kotsiopoulos, Chief Commercial Officer, spoke to Hubbis about the firm’s unique strategy and product offerings.

Founded in 1990 and with a presence in 35 countries and offices in eight major financial centres, Profile Software (Profile) has developed an enviable business footprint across the globe. From its Mid-East base in Dubai, the company is expanding its presence in the Middle East and Africa. 

The company today has a presence in Europe, the Middle East, America, Asia and Africa, throughout those regions delivering innovative solutions to both start-ups and established banking and finance institutions, through direct communication or a reliable partners network.

Addressing the needs of financial institutions 

Banks and financial institutions have ever more onerous requirements to follow regulatory guidelines, provide sophisticated client-focused services, make their operations more agile and digitally-focused, to become more competitive and profitable entities with easy-to-deliver new product offerings. 

Kotsiopoulos  explains that the company and its products have been highlighted in industry-leading research and reports by the likes of Gartner, Celent, IBS, Forrester and others. “In many cases,” he explained, “we distinguish ourselves in terms of functionality and client service, often ranking in top positions.”

Novel solutions for evolving needs

The investment management industry goes through various stages  of change to meet the requirements of institutional and private investors for fast, accurate and transparent monitoring, as well as compliance to the more demanding global regulatory regime.

Profile’s leading platform, Axia is an omnichannel wealth management  platform covering all aspects of the investment operations that modularly, and with flexibility, embrace the whole spectrum of portfolio management, with continuous updates on client onboarding, online trading, compliance issues (such as MiFID II), instruments, custodian links and bank interfaces, financial planning, and so forth. The investment management solution also supports operations in insurance firms, private banking, custody, brokerage needs and more, with a successful track record.

Unique customer experience

“All these can be used as an integrated solution depending on the institution’s infrastructure,” Kotsiopoulos says. “Or they can be a stand-alone solution to meet specific operational needs. Advanced design and highly customisable user interface provide a unique experience to customers and professionals.”

Profile also operates in the banking solutions space. Products include the FMS.next Suite that incorporates the core banking platform, the marketplace lending, the payments solution. And there is RiskAvert for risk management and Acumennet for treasury operations. 

“These solutions,” explains  Kotsiopoulos, “deliver a unique digital banking experience for challenger and digital banks that allows for advanced flexibility and customisation to help banks develop the functions needed as they grow.”

He reports that the Marketplace Lending platform has been successfully utilised across crowdfunding, P2P lending and alternative finance businesses that want a robust functionality with the combination of investment, banking and risk management capabilities, where needed. 

Looking at the finance sector holistically

Kotsiopoulos observes: “Financial Institutions require a holistic approach to enterprise risk and compliance that supports both management and governance objectives. The payments, risk and treasury solutions also deliver a comprehensive coverage offering with the same level of flexibility across operations.”

Capital markets have also developed exponentially over the past years to offer faster and more reliable services to investors. Modern tools achieve efficiency and economies of scale for remote access and on-the-go trading. However, traders not only require tools to help them effectively evaluate and forecast market moves, but they also need better performance and client-centric tools. Profile provides a range of solutions to cater for these needs.

Expanding products and geographic coverage

And Profile is continually on the lookout for synergistic expansion opportunities. It recently acquired Login SA to enhance its solutions suite for the financial services industry, as well as expanding its international operations while supporting local implementation. Login is located in Paris, France and Miami, US and specialises in trading, risk management and front-to-back-office software, dedicated to bank treasury and capital markets activities.

The company’s Dubai entity has been established to better serve the needs of its clients in the wider region. Furthermore, it has a representative office in Saudi Arabia for dedicated advice and market approach. 

The company targets the entire African and Middle Eastern regions as solutions are readily available to meet the specific needs and regulatory requirements in those markets.

“The driving force behind our expansion is client needs, so since 2010 we have expanded actively in these countries, opening an office and also forming partnerships,” Kotsiopoulos explained. “And as a result, we have enjoyed many new project implementations, a growing professional workforce and also a partner network to represent our solutions.”

He adds: “With our experienced consultants and sales professionals, we are delivering the local markets the full suite of solutions to meet the evolving needs of financial institutions.”

The growing record of achievement

The company has already implemented its solutions for investment management in the region in Adnic (UAE), Al Bilad (Saudi Arabia), Masraf Al Ryan (Qatar), and other locations. Furthermore, the banking platform, with specialised loans management and marketplace lending capabilities, is being rolled out and implemented in the surrounding region.

Profile’s team also participates in industry leading events to further demonstrate its capabilities, range of offerings and market specialisation. 

“We are pleased to also regularly receive awards pertinent to portfolio management, client onboarding, innovation, insurance investment and risk profiling from regional and international advisory firms,” he noted. “These further support the company’s commitment to delivering advanced solutions.” Profile has continued to develop its operations by offering focused and industry-recognised solution coverage to the market for banking and asset management requirements. 

Full suite of solutions

“We deliver to the full spectrum of operations,” Kotsiopoulos explained. 

“This is evident from client’s testimonials underscoring our ability to understand client needs and then provide the functionality needed via our market-tested platforms. We like the company to be viewed by our clients as their trusted partner to help them address their IT concerns and to help them overcome crucial operational challenges through innovative solutions and technology.”

Profile’s specific focus on investment management and banking solutions spreads in a wide-angle coverage to vertical solutions to meet the requirements of custody banks, digital banks as well as insurance firms, asset management firms, etc.  

Looking ahead, Kotsiopoulos says the firm’s strategy is to provide innovative and client-centric solutions covering all mission-critical aspects of a financial institution’s operations with tools that enhance user experience and promote the firm’s competitive advantage.