Today the Banking Industry Architecture Network (BIAN) is launching the latest development of its collaboratively-defined banking technology framework, designed to standardise and simplify overall banking architecture on a global scale – termed Service Landscape (SL) 5.0.

Based on a service-oriented architecture, SL 5.0 sees the number of defined business scenarios, for which the BIAN model can be used, jump from 190 to over 700. The latest release also incorporates new features, allowing it to be fully translated across the industry.

Defined through the collaborative input of over 60 leading banks, technology vendors and consultants, the model provides a simplified, yet comprehensive solution to enable financial institutions to innovate at pace without the costs and complexities that come with legacy banking technology.

Alongside working tirelessly to define the latest business scenarios to boost the service landscape’s usability, the BIAN members have built new tools to make the standard as accessible as possible to financial services institutions across the globe. This includes a tool to enable both members and non-members to instantly view the business scenarios linked to each unique Business Capability (Service Domain) – making the service landscape completely three dimensional for the first time.

In addition, BIAN is working with a series of partners to ensure that the language used to define the BIAN Model is translatable, whatever architecture language the financial services enterprise relies upon. New measures to support this include making the service landscape suitable for ArchiMate (a common architecture language) as well as UML (the current language deployed by BIAN). SL 5.0 will also be better aligned with the TOGAF notation.

There are also made major improvements on the integration of a very comprehensive Business Vocabulary. This vocabulary is based on the ISO20022 business vocabulary and additions are a based on the FIBO principles.

Hans Tesselaar, executive director BIAN commented: “Financial enterprises are operating in a fiercely competitive market. They need to be able to innovate at speed and work with multiple technology partners to keep pace with customer demands. Forming a globally standardised technology framework is key to providing these companies with the flexibility to continuously adapt to the changing financial landscape.

“With this latest release, we have focused our efforts on making the BIAN model as accessible as possible across to the whole global financial services industry. While these enterprises may compete on a customer service level, they realise the importance of relying on a single standardised, collaborative model.

“I’d like to thank all of our members for their continued support in driving the industry forward through our framework. It is the support of these industry front-runners and the knowledge and passion of individual experts within those enterprises that drives the ecosystem forward.”