Vista Group (VistaBankGroup.com), a challenger bank building itself into a world class pan-African financial institution specifically designed to meet the needs of retail and commercial customers, has partnered with Temenos (SIX: TEMN) (Temenos.com), the banking software company, to power its digital transformation journey.

Vista Bank is transforming its IT systems using Temenos Infinity, a breakthrough digital front office and Temenos T24 Transact, the next generation in core banking. As part of these products, Vista Bank also has selected the advanced Analytics and Reporting, Risk and Compliance modules as well as  the Temenos Payments Hub product.

Vista Group was established following the acquisition of First International Bank (FIB) Group in 2015 by the US based investment fund, Lilium Capital. Challenging the banking status quo, Vista Bank takes a customer-centric and innovative digital approach to meeting the needs of its clients – from members of the public to SMEs.

Vista Bank conducted a rigorous competitive evaluation of solutions to replace its legacy IT systems. By implementing the Temenos software, the bank will be able to introduce new products and services more quickly, support its growth ambitions and continue to pursue its vision of becoming the financial institution of choice through innovative banking in its respective markets. It will also enable the bank to offer market-leading services to its customers through enhanced digital channels whilst meeting its customers’ increasing expectations for enhanced functionality, products and services when conducting their banking transactions.

The Temenos regional model bank approach, which includes pre-configured local functionality and best practices, will enable Vista Bank to cater for specific regulatory requirements during its expansion. Currently operating through a network of 43 branches across Sierra Leone, Guinea and The Gambia, the group’s goal is to expand its footprint into the West African Monetary Union and the Central African market, targeting a presence in 15 countries by 2025.

Vista Bank has entered into strategic partnerships with global institutions to drive its growth strategy in SME banking, leasing, women’s business banking, meso-finance loans and supply chain finance in addition to expanding its consumer banking operations. The bank will leverage Temenos' global expertise and 25 years of experience in providing integrated, scalable packaged software, as well as Temenos' commitment to invest 20 percent of revenues into research and development every year, which is the highest in the industry.

Simon Tiemtore, Group Chairman at Vista Bank, said: “As a challenger bank we are investing in our technology to ensure that we provide cutting edge products and services to our customers. I am delighted that, through our partnership with Temenos which leverages their 25 years of industry expertise, we now have the most sophisticated, innovative, cloud-native banking platform. This will help us realize our vision of building a truly pan-African financial institution group that will add value to the African economy and promote financial inclusion. Temenos is our trusted strategic technology partner and our customers will reap the rewards of its innovative API-first, cloud-native and cloud agnostic software.”

Femi Adeoti, Managing Director Africa Operations at Inlaks, said: “As a distributor and reseller of Temenos software in West Africa for more than 20 years, it is our delight to provide best in class digital banking solutions to Vista Bank via Temenos, the global leader in banking software. Inlaks as a company thrives on providing innovative solutions that enable our customers to adapt and stand out in the ever-evolving landscape of financial technology”. 

Jean-Paul Mergeai, Managing Director Middle East & Africa at Temenos, said: "We are proud to welcome Vista Bank, an innovative and exciting challenger bank, to the Temenos family. We look forward to working as a close strategic technology partner of the bank as it realizes its goal of building a world-class pan-African financial institution group in addition to driving both economic development and financial inclusion in Africa. With Temenos’ market-leading, cloud-agnostic, cloud-agnostic technology the bank will be in an ideal position to meet their commitment of providing cutting-edge digital banking solutions, as well as innovative products and services, aimed at satisfying the unique needs of their customers. This partnership further strengthens Temenos’ longstanding presence in West Africa where for years our real-time and scalable banking software has been helping financial institutions address their evolving customer demands and regulatory requirements. We look forward to working with Vista Bank as it transforms the services that it offers to its customers."