Western European bank IT spending on retail solutions to generate $7.6 bln in 2005

Financial Insights forecasts total spending for retail solutions by Western European banks to reach $7.6 bln in 2005, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the next four years of 4%. Core banking platforms are just a part of the total spending for retail solutions, but they are expected to absorb an increasingly larger part of the spending. Western European banks' infrastructure never grew by design; rather, it expanded in response to the latest technology trends, changing business needs, government regulations, or through geographic or business expansion. The result is legacy spaghetti junctions, business and IT silos, and fragmented customer views: a complex architecture that cannot keep up with the pace of change.