Core banking is the central processing unit of a bank. Banks, with the help of software vendors, have found the opportunity to leverage Internet technology to handle transactions.

Most of the paper-based transactions of yesteryear have been replaced by digital alternatives. Automation has brought a mantra of efficiency and increased productivity. Core banking systems run 24/7 to support banking operations and transactions using Internet banking, ATM, phone, and debit cards. In the report, Core Banking Solutions for Small Banks: A Global Perspective, Celent compares the range of solutions available to small banks around the world. Celent has created a map of core banking vendors catering to small banks around the world. Celent then ranks these vendors on its ABCD analysis.


"Unlike the small banks in North America, small banks around the world prefer on-premise implementation over a hosted model," says Rajesh M R, Celent analyst and coauthor of the report. "A lack of developed, reliable communication networks, and concerns over data security have led banks to have their own infrastructures."

"These global players didn’t design their systems around batch processing of checks, so real time functionality has been designed in from the start," adds Bart Narter, Senior Vice President of Celent's Banking Group and coauthor of the report.

This report is the third in a series on core banking. Subsequent reports will include Core Banking Solutions for Midsize Banks: A Global Perspective and Core Banking Solutions for Large Banks: A Global Perspective.