Cognizant Agrees to Acquire Bank-Owned Finnish IT Firm

The buyout is part of a programme to implement a shared core banking platform for three of Finland’s savings banks. Cognizant has signed a multi-year agreement with Savings Banks Group, Oma Savings Bank Plc and POP Bank Group to construct a cloud-based shared ledger based on Temenos 24 and Savings Hub. The agreement will also see Cognizant acquire Oy Samlink Ab, the technology service provider currently owned by owned by Savings Banks Group (42%), Aktia Bank (22.56%), Oma Savings Bank (15.45%), Handelsbanken (7.53%), Posti Group (5.88%), POP Bank Group (5.24%) and several other shareholders. According to a press release, the consultancy is looking to the acquisition to provide it with pool of knowledge and talent in Finland, as well as two local delivery centres. “We look forward to welcoming Oy Samlink Ab employees to Cognizant,” said Santosh Thomas, president of global growth markets at Cognizant. “We plan to establish banking and financial services’ centres of excellence at their facilities which will enhance Cognizant’s ability to serve clients across the Nordics, specifically, and in Europe as a whole.”