Fintech Partnership Streamlines Banking Data Integrations
“We’re on the brink of enabling non-programmers to build integrations with
minimal effort,” Skye Isard, Sandbox Banking co-founder and CTO, told The New
Stack. “AI-driven tools can automate the creation of logic for integrations,
seriously reducing the complexity and time required to deploy new workflows. “AI
is empowering ‘citizen developers‘ — individuals without coding expertise — to
create automations and integrations, further democratizing access to technology.
AI allows us to leverage our vast library of API documentation and prebuilt
integrations to create even more intelligent and automated solutions. We
envision a future where AI can generate integration logic, making it easier for
non-programmers to build and deploy integrations.” ... Given the sensitive
nature of banking data, Sandbox Banking prioritizes security, Isard said. Its
platform adheres to stringent compliance standards, including SOC2 audits,
recurring penetration testing and advanced encryption protocols. Data
persistence is minimized, with live databases retaining sensitive information
for no more than 14 days. These measures ensure that Sandbox Banking’s solutions
not only improve efficiency but also meet high standards of data protection and
privacy, Isard said.Dear CEO: It’s time to rethink security leadership and empower your CISO
The stakes have never been higher. Every week, another breach makes headlines,
costing millions in losses, irreparable damage to reputations, and a wave of
uncertainty that ripples through customers and stakeholders alike. But consider
this: Who is truly liable when things go wrong? You might assume the CISO holds
the liability, but if they aren’t empowered with the authority, resources, and
support to act effectively, can we honestly place the blame there? ... Giving
the CISO a seat at the table isn’t a symbolic gesture — it’s a practical
necessity. It allows us to align security strategies with business goals,
identify risks before they become roadblocks, and ensure that opportunities are
pursued without unnecessary exposure. When CISOs are integrated into the
executive team, they’re not just protecting the business; they’re enabling it to
grow with confidence. That said, some CEOs reading this may not have this type
of CISO in their organization today. If that’s the case, it’s worth asking why.
Is the person in the CISO seat there to simply tick a box? If so, that’s a
recipe for disaster. The No. 1 core competency a CISO should possess is
leadership — the ability to inspire, align, and drive a security strategy that
supports and advances the business.What are AI agents and why are they now so pervasive?
Agentic AI operates in two key ways. First, it offers specialized agents
capable of autonomously completing tasks across the open web, in mobile apps,
or as an operating system. A specific type of agentic AI, called
conversational web agents, functions much like chatbots. In this case, the
agentic AI engages users through multimodal conversations, extending beyond
simple text chats to accompany them as they navigate the open web or use apps
... AI agents are already showing up in places you might not expect. For
example, most self-driving vehicles today use sensors to collect data about
their surroundings, which is then processed by AI agentic software to create a
map and navigate the vehicle. AI agents play several other critical roles in
autonomous vehicle route optimization, traffic management, and real-time
decision-making — they can even predict when a vehicle needs maintenance. ...
Notably, AI agents also have the ability to remember past interactions and
behaviors. They can store those experiences and even perform “self-reflection”
or evaluation to inform future actions, according to IDC. ... And while most
agentic AI tools claim to be safe and secure, a lot depends on the information
sources they use. That’s because the source of data used by the agents could
vary — from more limited corporate data to the wide open internet.Failover vs. Failback: Two Disaster Recovery Methods
Failover is critical in a business continuity event because it keeps
operations running. By having a system to which your business can transition
when a primary system is unavailable, you're able to continue doing business.
People can work, revenue streams are preserved, and customers can be served.
Without failover, these functions could grind to a halt, leading to
significant disruption. Many organizations depend on technology for critical
processes, and when those processes are unavailable, analog alternatives may
be insufficient or entirely obsolete. Failover ensures that even in a
disaster, the business keeps moving. Failback comes into play once the need
for failover ends. As the disaster is resolved, failback allows the
organization to return to normal operations. Typically, failback is necessary
when the standby system cannot sustain operations as effectively as the
primary system. For instance, a standby system may not be a full replica of
the primary system and might be designed only for temporary use during an
emergency. In an ideal world, every business would maintain two fully
operational environments: a primary environment and an identical standby
environment. This setup would allow for seamless transitions during disasters,
ensuring that business operations are completely unaffected.Burnout: A chronic epidemic in the IT industry
For IT leaders aware of the impact burnout can have on their staff, the
reality of exhaustion in IT and tech is further complicated by the fact that
burnout isn’t caused by just one thing. It’s a problem that builds slowly over
time, leading to disengaged and unmotivated employees with one foot out the
door. It can be hard to spot, too. ... Another contributing factor to burnout
is the rapid adoption of AI, which has left a lot of workers feeling
overwhelmed by keeping up with the latest industry trends. While it’s often
touted as a productivity booster, 85% of IT leaders plan to make AI technology
mandatory or encourage it’s use in the coming year, which is increasing
pressure on workers to upskill, according to Upwork. In fact, 77% of employees
said AI has added to their workloads, rather than relieved their daily
responsibilities. Cybersecurity professionals feel the pressure of AI, too,
with 42% reporting they have concerns about AI-powered attacks, according to
BlackFog. To help combat this, 41% also say they need bigger budgets for
security tools, along with more support to alleviate pressure to keep the
organization safe. Burnout can lead to dangerous results when it comes to
security as 63% of respondents said their team experiences alert fatigue,
which desensitizes them to the urgency of security events.Why Banks Need Flexible Tech Architecture — and How to Build It
To operate and launch the banking experience of the future, banks and credit
unions must implement “MACH” and “composable” technologies that allow digital
teams to take advantage of future-proofed, in-the-moment
innovations.Composable technology stresses a modular approach that enables
organizations to obtain the best options for their needs in each aspect of
their tech, all options working together regardless of the source. MACH — I’ll
get into the details below — is an approach to achieving composability. ...
Considered a more modern approach, MACH is a standard way of building
technology that enables organizations to develop a flexible enterprise tech
stack in which each component is modular, scalable and easily replaced. MACH
technologies must be microservices-based, API-first, cloud-native SaaS, and
“headless,” in which the customer’s front-end digital experience is decoupled
from the back-end programming. Companies that leverage a composable approach
using MACH principles can prepare for future innovation through a more
resilient and modern tech stack. ... The advantage of a MACH architecture
includes being able to select modular, best-of-breed solutions to integrate
into the overall tech stack, while ensuring each of the pieces work together
seamlessly. Analysing Linus Torvald’s Critique of Docker
First off, we ditch the shared-kernel approach entirely. We need to build a
micro-hypervisor model, where each container runs its own minimal kernel. This
ensures that every container is genuinely isolated, similar to a lightweight
VM but without the bloat. By employing a microkernel architecture, you’re
essentially granting each container its own mini-OS that only loads essential
components, drastically reducing the attack surface. This step eliminates the
primary flaw of Docker’s shared-kernel model. Next, leverage hardware-assisted
virtualisation like Intel VT-x or AMD-V to handle isolation efficiently. This
is where we’ll differentiate ourselves from Docker’s reliance on namespaces.
With hardware support, each container will get near-native performance while
maintaining strict separation. For example, instead of binding everything to a
Linux kernel, containers will interact directly with hardware-level isolation,
meaning exploits won’t have the chance to jump from one container to another.
We can’t ignore orchestration. Rather than bolting on security later, build an
orchestration layer that enforces strict security policies from the get-go.
This orchestration tool, think Kubernetes but with security baked in, will
enforce seccomp, AppArmor, and SELinux profiles automatically based on
container configurations. Leaders must balance humility with inspiration to foster a culture of curiosity and courage
It is important how do we, as leaders, show up. The second is culture. What kind of culture do we create as leaders? Fostering an environment that encourages adaptability, resilience, and openness to change, rather than rigidity or resistance. And, the third important factor is the system. What kind of systems do we establish to continuously adopt and adapt to change, ensuring the organization remains flexible and forward-looking? To inspire collaboration and trust among the team, Divya sees humility as a crucial factor. Leaders must first acknowledge that they don’t have all the answers. “When leaders demonstrate vulnerability, team members are more likely to step forward with their knowledge and ideas.” Citing the example of leading by example, she mentioned how her current CFO attended a two-month machine learning course at the London School of Economics, signaling his willingness to learn and adapt. This motivated the entire organisation to upskill and embrace new technologies. Creating the right culture is the next step. Leaders must foster curiosity by rewarding those who explore new knowledge and share their insights. For example, celebrating a retail employee who transitioned into data analytics inspires others to follow suit.How to Keep IT Team Boredom From Killing Productivity
A bored IT team is a ticking time bomb, Herberger warns. "The risks are clear:
increased turnover as talent walks out the door, underperformance that drags
down productivity, and a contagious drop in morale that can spread like a
virus across the organization," he says. "Worse, in a competitive industry,
boredom kills innovation, leaving your company vulnerable to being outpaced by
more engaged and agile competitors." A disengaged IT team, or team subset, can
negatively impact business performance, since members are probably not
contributing to their full abilities. ... To reinvigorate a sagging IT team,
Herberger recommends shaking things up by introducing fresh challenges and
innovation opportunities: "Whether it's rotating team roles, fostering a
culture of collaboration, or carving out time for passion projects, the goal
is clear: disrupt the routine, reawaken creativity, and make the team
feel like they're part of something bigger than just punching the clock." ...
Daly recommends that IT leaders stay close to their workforce in order to
understand their engagement levels, manage mundane tasks effectively, and
create space for more interesting assignments. To help prevent disengagement,
he suggests offering learning opportunities and activities that promote
development and growth. Why and how to craft an effective hyperscale cloud exit strategy
If a business does choose to go down the hyperscale route, my advice is to
formulate an exit plan before onboarding. It’s a key part of contingency
planning and should be thought through and finalized before any vendor
contract is signed. A cloud exit strategy acts as an insurance policy for
events that are both inside and outside of an organization’s control. ... An
organization should bring together representatives from each area of a
business, ranging from the IT leadership and technology architecture teams, to
procurement and sourcing, legal and compliance, and finance. Together, they
need to understand how the current infrastructure set up is designed and the
specific servers that are being used. They also need to carry out a detailed
audit of what’s included in their monthly bills, any major inefficiencies, and
details of platform integrations and tightly coupled systems. Having this
information will make it far easier to plan out a phased exit from hyperscale
cloud, or better facilitate a seamless move to a smaller, private cloud
environment. ... And lastly, any exit plan should budget for migration costs,
which are often overlooked. The budget should include the cost of hardware for
on-prem and colocation options, the cost of hosting for infrastructure as a
service (IaaS) options, data migration fees, labor costs, post migration
expenses and costs of any service overlaps. Quote for the day:
"What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise." -- Oscar Wilde
No comments:
Post a Comment