SunGard adds on SOX IT

NEW YORK – In mid-September, SunGard released an updated version of its BancWare risk management platform, which is intended to help banks comply with sections of the US Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX).

SunGard’s BancWare OpRisk is powered by Sword, a risk management platform from Dublin-based Ci-3. It includes risk management and business intelligence functionality and provides a software solution for operational risk management, corporate governance and internal audit, say SunGuard officials.

Specifically, BancWare OpRisk is intended to help customers document risks and controls, assign accountability for risks, and give senior management a tool for review and sign-off. Customers can decide how they want to track certain information and create their own self-assessment and scorecards.

The offering includes key risk indicator and historical data maps, SOX documentation audit trail, control and process testing, and workflow management. Customers can maintain a single system for both risk management and regulatory compliance.

"Proactively addressing operational risk is increasingly recognised as part of a sensible, strategic approach to enterprise risk management and corporate governance," says Terence Faherty, president of SunGard’s BancWare business unit.

A May report from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that costs associated with the implementation of the SOX legislation had prompted some financial services firms to cancel or defer their IT investments. The GAO found that 39 percent of respondents to its survey "indicated that they deferred or cancelled information technology investments".

SunGard recently celebrated the first anniversary of its $11.3 billion leveraged buy-out (LBO) by seven private equity firms, a move CEO and president Cris Conde says has enabled the company to better focus on long-term investments. OR&C