"i-flex will continue to support non-Oracle platforms"

Having started with a million dollar investment, i-flex-founded in 1992 as

a spin-off from Citigroup-is a provider of core banking, analytics and lending

software and services to the BFSI industry globally. Now valued at a billion

dollar much has been written about i-flex's success as the world's #1 core

banking software company. With Oracle acquiring 41% stakes in the company, i-flex

continues to draw media attention. In an interview with Minu Sirsalewala of

Dataquest, the company's CEO-India Operations and CFO, Deepak Ghaisas, talks

about how the acquisition will prove beneficial to the players involved and the

strategy ahead. Excerpts:

After the recent acquisition by Oracle, has there been a

change in business strategy at i-flex?



Oracle acquired Citigroup's 41% equity interest in i-flex, and also

announced an open offer to purchase up to an additional 20% ownership interest

in the company. Following regulatory clearances, Oracle is expected to become

the majority shareholder of i-flex through these transactions. The acquisition

was more as a business partnership to leverage on the brand and products of both

companies involved. There is no new business strategy or revision of strategy

after the acquisition. We are looking at leveraging on the over 8,500

relationships that Oracle has with banks across the world. i-flex will continue

to operate under current management and remain a publicly traded company. By

aligning the talents of both organizations, we will be better able to address

the evolving needs of the banking industry.

Oracle and i-flex have signed a memorandum of understanding

to align product development, sales, marketing and services activities effective

upon completion of the transaction. Oracle and i-flex will establish an

inter-company committee consisting of senior executives from both companies,

across key functional areas, to provide oversight of the strategy and execution

of the relationship. We plan to develop a joint roadmap for a comprehensive next

generation solution based on open standards. By aligning with Oracle, i-flex

will be able to draw on Oracle global infrastructure, resources and brand. The

companies plan to work together to provide a seamless face to the customer for

professional services and support.

Is there any cross selling? How does the company plan to

address the market for the i-flex product suite?



As the market has further opened up for us with the acquisition, there will

be definite cross selling. As of now 90% of our customers are already on Oracle.

We will have synergies on technology for our products. The services, which were

being outsourced by Oracle will now be taken care of by i-flex.

i-flex will continue to deliver enhancements to all its

products for existing and new customers. Investments that customers have made in

i-flex will be preserved and grow in value, given the complementarities of

Oracle and i-flex products. The two companies will be investing jointly with an

integrated product roadmap that is optimized for the Oracle Fusion

infrastructure using open standards.

i-flex will be able to fully draw on Oracle's global

infrastructure, resources and support and improve its competitive advantage and

market visibility. Both companies will benefit through access to an expanded

footprint within the banking industry. Also, the Service Oriented Architecture (SOA)

for next generation solutions will allow for seamless integration with partner

solutions. Where Flexcube is based on Oracle it will be easy to pitch for ERP

and other data warehousing tools.

What is the combined Oracle and i-flex product roadmap?



After the transaction closes, Oracle and i-flex will work together to

develop a comprehensive solution roadmap that combines the footprints of both

companies into the integrated applications and infrastructure offering in the

banking industry.

The plans include tight, seamless integration of Oracle and i-flex

products, to be based on industry standards such as Java and SOA framework.

Optimize for the standards-based Fusion platform and deliver framework for

integration with partner solutions

Will i-flex continue to develop solutions on platforms and

databases other than Oracle's?



i-flex will continue to support its technology partners and maintain product
development on non-Oracle technology platforms to serve customer needs.

Will banking be a focus for Oracle in the long term and

will it continue to develop products for the banking and financial services

industries in the future?



The financial services industry is a strategic focus for Oracle and will

continue to be in the long term. This is solidified through the substantial

investment that Oracle has made in i-flex and the close alignment of our

strategies going forward.

They will continue to develop cross-industry products that

have specific functional capabilities for the banking and financial services

industries. However, Oracle's products will remain very complementary and

tightly integrated with what i-flex provides, to ensure we have the most

comprehensive end-to-end solution for the financial industry.

i-flex has been acquiring companies to give their

portfolio an edge over other players in the market. Will you continue with this

strategy?

The B&A (build & add modules) strategy is an integral

part of i-flex. We believe that as a products company-with in-depth domain

knowledge of the financial industry-our value proposition should be in

providing end-to-end solution in the entire domain space. i-flex develops and

supports a suite of applications for core banking, analytics; and the product

suite and services includes Flexcube a complete universal banking solution;

Reveleus, an advanced analytics and information management solution; Daybreak an

enterprise-wide loan processing suite; Primesourcing, our arm for value-added

custom software development, technology deployment and management, process and

quality management, and technology and business consulting; and Business Process

Outsourcing (BPO).

For us the inorganic growth is a strategy to impact the top

line. We are now looking at front line, treasury applications, insurance and few

others to be added to the portfolio.