Banks, credit card companies, and other financial services organizations require efficient, reliable, and state-of-the art data centers.

Challenge
Money may make the world go around, but it's IT systems that put financial services companies into motion. Banks, brokerages, insurance companies, credit card companies, and other financial organizations all require efficient, reliable, and state-of-the art data centers to handle a rapidly growing number of tasks.

Along with government agencies, financial services organizations pioneered the data center concept back in the 1950s and 1960s, when such facilities were simply known as "computer rooms." Today, cutting-edge data centers handle an array of crucial tasks for an industry that's driven by numbers and statistics.

Several years ago, most financial service companies owned and operated their own massive, dedicated data centers. But facing soaring IT costs and tighter budgets, many financial service organizations have since shifted their facilities to remote, shared sites that can provide a full array of resources and services far more inexpensively and flexibly.

Having adequate amounts of processing power and storage has always been a major concern for financial services companies. Yet sophisticated new customer-facing services, such as smart phone account access and website bill payments, are now forcing institutions to pay more attention to other critical items, including network services, Web hosting, and uptime guarantees. Additionally, given the sensitive nature of their business, financial organizations require state-of-the-art virtual and physical security controls to protect corporate and customer data, as well as financial transaction streams.

Financial services companies are heavy users of just about every data center technology and resource available, including processing power, storage, energy, cooling, network services, and more. Also, to ensure that security measures meet or exceed regulatory requirements, financial institutions look for data center sites featuring the latest safeguards, such as a trained security staff, closed-circuit video surveillance, and cutting-edge access controls.

In the same way financial services organizations helped launch the original data center model, the industry is now trailblazing virtualization technology. Financial services firms are currently virtualizing servers, storage systems, and just about every other technology they can think of, often via cloud computing, in order to obtain improved operational efficiencies. Financial services players are also tapping into cloud computing to speed software development, utilize scalable services, and create a cost-effective home for a variety of innovative new financial services applications.

Financial services organizations know that IO fully understands the massive computing, networking, and security needed, as well as the resources necessary to help solve these challenges. IO's private cloud computing infrastructure, network services, multi-layered approach to access control, and 100% uptime SLA help address the challenges faced by the financial services community. Increasingly, IO's modular data center system, IO.Anywhere®, is becoming an attractive option for financial services firms that require faster-time-to market, lower costs, and greater geographic flexibility.

Learn more on how IO can help.