As banks invest heavily in new digital payment experiences, the infrastructure processing those transactions is also being forced to evolve. Bank Pekao’s move to modernize its card payment switching environment reflects the continuing shift away from legacy payments architecture towards platforms designed for greater scale, flexibility and faster innovation.
Bank Pekao S.A., one of the largest financial institutions in Central and Eastern Europe, has selected NCR Atleos’ Authentic payment switching platform as part of a modernization of its card payment processing infrastructure.
The agreement will see NCR Atleos provide its Authentic platform to support Bank Pekao’s card payment processing operations, while giving the bank a scalable technology foundation intended to support future growth and changing customer requirements.
The implementation forms part of Bank Pekao’s wider technology strategy as the institution continues to invest in infrastructure capable of improving operational efficiency and resilience while supporting the development of new financial services.
“As one of the leading financial institutions in Central and Eastern Europe, we are continuously investing in technologies that enhance efficiency, resilience and innovation across our operations,” said Maciej Jopyk, CIO and Head of IT at Bank Pekao S.A.
“After a comprehensive evaluation process, we selected the Authentic platform because of its proven capabilities, flexibility and strong track record supporting payment modernization initiatives at financial institutions around the world. We look forward to working with Atleos to advance our infrastructure strategy and support future growth.”
Authentic is designed to support mission-critical card payment processing environments and enable financial institutions to modernize legacy infrastructure, streamline operations and accelerate the introduction of new payment services.
The deployment at Bank Pekao adds another major financial institution to the platform at a time when banks are reassessing the technology underpinning their payment operations. While much of the industry’s recent innovation has focused on customer-facing experiences, the processing and switching infrastructure behind those services remains critical to how quickly banks can introduce new capabilities.
Modern card processing environments must handle increasing transaction volumes while maintaining high levels of availability and resilience. At the same time, banks need greater flexibility as payment methods, customer expectations and the wider digital commerce ecosystem continue to evolve.
For established institutions, this is increasing pressure to replace or modernize legacy systems that can make new product development more complex and expensive.
“This agreement with Bank Pekao S.A. represents an important milestone for Atleos and further demonstrates Authentic leadership in helping financial institutions modernize complex payments environments,” said Bartłomiej Śliwa, Area Vice President, Central and Eastern Europe, Global Sales at NCR Atleos.
“As one of the most respected banking brands in the region, Bank Pekao S.A. provides an outstanding example for organizations pursuing similar transformation initiatives. We are proud to support the bank’s modernization strategy and look forward to delivering a successful implementation that creates long-term value.”
The agreement also expands NCR Atleos’ presence in Central and Eastern Europe, where financial institutions continue to invest in modern payment infrastructure as part of broader technology transformation programmes.
For Bank Pekao, the move provides a new processing foundation for its existing card operations while creating greater flexibility for future payment services. For NCR Atleos, the deployment provides another large-scale banking implementation for Authentic in the European market.
What it means for the industry
- Payment modernization is moving deeper into the technology stack. Banks are not only redesigning apps and customer experiences but increasingly replacing the processing infrastructure that sits behind them.
- Legacy payment architecture is becoming a strategic constraint. As payment services evolve more quickly, banks need infrastructure capable of supporting new products without requiring extensive changes to underlying systems.
- Scalability and flexibility are becoming central purchasing criteria. Bank Pekao’s selection highlights how large institutions are looking beyond immediate processing requirements towards platforms capable of supporting future payment innovation.
- Infrastructure competition remains important in payments. Much of the visible innovation may happen at the consumer layer, but payment switches, processing platforms and other underlying technologies will continue to determine how quickly banks can bring new services to market.
Article Source: NCR Atleos
