SAS joins forces with Belfius Bank to innovate with data

Belgian financial institute relies on SAS® to manage current and future challenges in the banking sector

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Feb 05, 2018, 08:00 ET

CARY, N.C., Feb. 5, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- After decades of collaboration, Belfius has expanded its relationship with SAS to build and execute its digital strategy. Fueling innovation with data will help Belfius become the bank of the future and the leader in customer experience.

Belfius is the fastest-growing financial institute in Belgium when it comes to mobile activity, and it has garnered a huge amount of data. As Geert Van Mol, Chief Digital Officer at Belfius Bank & Insurance, stated at the 2017 SAS^® Forum Belux, "These data are the starting point of the next wave of innovations. Using data for innovation will be a long and never-ending journey, which starts with the centralization and integration of all these data, while continuing to focus on customer experience. The most rewarding projects that will turn data into additional revenue are yet to come, but they will make a huge difference."

The SAS Platform will be the foundation helping Belfius speed up innovation and accomplish these projects. Spanning data management, exploration and visualization, predictive analytics capabilities and governance, SAS will allow Belfius to turn data from anywhere in the organization into valuable insights that can be used in multiple domains like sales, risk management and marketing.

The SAS Platform, and its SAS^® Viya^® capabilities such as embedded artificial intelligence and integration with open source, will allow Belfius to combine speed and governance while also focusing on superior customer experience.

Anne-Marie Glineur, Chief Data Officer at Belfius explains this next step in the relationship: "We believe in SAS as a strong ally. Not just because of their decades of experience in analytics and data management, but also because SAS keeps investing in the newest technologies. They also reflect with us about how we can face current and future challenges to stay competitive in a rapidly changing environment."

SAS will also help Belfius comply with the General Data Protection Regulation in a more industrialized way by centrally managing and processing data from all types of environments.

"We look forward to taking the relationship we've built with Belfius over the years to the next level, not just as a software supplier, but as a true innovation collaborator," says Jeroen Van Godtsenhoven, Managing Director of SAS Belgium and Luxembourg. "The key to its success is our shared DNA. Both Belfius and SAS believe customer experience is crucial. In today's world of hyper-personalization and customer care you can't win without capitalizing on data and analytics through machine learning and artificial intelligence. SAS will help Belfius to serve its customers in the best way."

About Belfius Bank
Belfius Bank & Insurance is a well-established bank and insurance provider with a local focus. It operates in Belgium in three main areas: retail and commercial banking, financial services for the public and corporate sectors and insurance. Supported by 150 years of experience in the public sector and 50 years in retail banking, Belfius Banque et Assurances is wholly owned by the Belgian Government via the Federal Holding and Investment Company (SFPI).

About SAS
SAS is the leader in analytics. Through innovative software and services, SAS empowers and inspires customers around the world to transform data into intelligence. SAS gives you THE POWER TO KNOW^®.

SAS and all other SAS Institute Inc. product or service names are registered trademarks or trademarks of SAS Institute Inc. in the USA and other countries. ® indicates USA registration. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective companies. Copyright © 2018 SAS Institute Inc. All rights reserved.

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