‘One of our main aims is to equip the Bank to meet the challenges of the future.’
Together with Swisscom, Banque Cantonale du Valais has redesigned its IT infrastructure around Microsoft 365, Intune and Teams and adopted a Zero Trust strategy to ensure security and agility.
BCVS modernises its IT environment with Microsoft 365, Intune and Zero Trust
- Major bank serving both individuals and businesses within the canton of Valais
- Over 150,000 customers and 550 employees
- Balance sheet total of more than CHF 21 billion
- Centralisation of the entire IT infrastructure on Swisscom systems
- Installation of state-of-the-art cloud-based workstations (EWS, Microsoft 365)
- Adoption of a Zero Trust security strategy
Modernisation of the IT infrastructure
Swisscom has been working with Banque Cantonale du Valais (BCVS) since 2007 to support the bank’s goal of establishing a robust, future-oriented infrastructure.
With over 150,000 customers, 550 employees and a balance sheet of CHF 21 billion, BCVS is a key player in the banking landscape of the Valais. Concerned with ensuring its growth and competitiveness in an ever-evolving environment, the bank wanted to modernise and strengthen its IT infrastructure to meet future security and mobility requirements and increase its attractiveness as a workplace.
Centralisation of the IT environment and adoption of the Zero Trust model
Historically, the infrastructure at BCVS used to rely on two external providers and a network of ageing data centres. This fragmented structure was limiting global visibility, complicating maintenance and slowing down technological development.
To increase coherence and security, BCVS took the strategic decision to centralise its entire IT environment on Swisscom systems. This reorganisation was combined with the adoption of a sovereign cloud-based solution from Swisscom and a Zero Trust approach to cybersecurity. Based on systematic verification of every access request – whether internal or external – this model allows the bank to improve its standards of protection while at the same time preparing its IT system for the challenges that lie ahead.
A state-of-the-art workstation optimised for performance and mobility
As part of this global transformation, BCVS also re-evaluated the working experience for its employees. Together with Swisscom, the bank installed a new-generation workstation (Swisscom Enterprise Workspace), which runs on the cloud-based Microsoft 365 platform and combines Microsoft Intune, Teams telephony and mobile phone integration. The implementation also included management and security solutions for company devices and their data.
The resulting architecture provides a modern, mobile, secure environment that easily meets today’s needs for flexibility and collaboration.
Thanks to the use of laptops and collaborative tools such as Microsoft Teams, communication lines are now more free-flowing and remote working has become a natural part of the bank’s culture. Each employee also received a smartphone and a Swisscom subscription, with the aim of increasing both mobility and connectivity within the company.
In addition, the entire system was fortified with advanced security, encryption and data governance (DLP) features befitting the Zero Trust strategy.
Measurable gains for employees
BCVS now has an integrated, high-performance infrastructure controlled entirely by Swisscom. This project – the first of its kind in the banking sector – has set new standards in security and flexibility. The results speak for themselves: 94% of the employees say they are very satisfied with their new workstation, which indicates an extremely positive user experience. The bank can therefore enjoy a more agile and more reliable IT management system that directly supports its ambitions in terms of performance and innovation.
At the heart of the project: dedicated teams with a shared vision
The success of this project is predominantly down to close, human cooperation between the teams at BCVS and at Swisscom. The two partners managed to bring about this ambitious transformation by harnessing the synergies between their expertise and their joint commitment.
Driven by a shared vision geared towards security, efficiency and innovation, the teams were able to create a partnership based on trust and performance.
