EY focuses on Big Data in finance at Madrid innovation centre
Spain will host EY’s new Big Data centre in Madrid
A new global innovation centre in Madrid promises to illuminate the uses of Big Data for banks and financial institutions. Built by EY (formerly Ernst & Young), the centre is part of a $500 million investment in analytics by the company.
Big Data has become a fixture of discussion in financial services over the last few years. The term usually refers to the huge increase in both the quantity and the velocity of incoming data that companies need to process in the 21st century. This increase, driven partly by improvements in computing power, greater connectivity (internet, mobile, etc) and the rise of real time data feeds and services, places a lot of pressure on existing IT resources.
EY’s new centre in Madrid was built to ‘help financial services firms use the vast volume of data they collect and store to improve their products and customer experience’. It includes a laboratory to design new ways of managing and monetizing Big Data. It also has an analytics factory that will provide analytics services, a business partnership program focusing on collaboration with industry, universities and start-ups, and a ‘learning network’ that connects professionals and start-ups active in financial technology.
“The sheer volume of information that financial services firms are now producing means it has never been more important to find innovative ways of managing and capitalizing on data,” said Beatriz Sanz, partner and data analytics leader for EY financial services in EMEIA. “Although the vast majority of businesses know that the data they generate could hold the key to new revenue streams and improve how they operate, 80% remain in the early stages of truly being able to claim they are on top of it. The firms that successfully put their data to use will find they have real competitive advantage in the market.”
EY also plans to launch an EY Analytics Academy that will offer a one-year educational course in big data and advanced analytics.
“Financial services has navigated the post-crisis regulatory and economic environment. It now needs to deal with major technology and business model disruption driven by the rise of digital and the emergence of FinTech,” said Andy Baldwin, EY’s managing partner for financial services, EMEIA. “We see significant client need and demand to better understand and manage their customer and business data. The challenge is to use the information insightfully to create real value for the customer while also identifying ways in which the business can be managed more effectively and efficiently. Doing this well is difficult and will require the industry to develop new and enhance existing data analysis skills and capabilities.”
