Capital G Bank is to update its computer system this summer to improve and expand its range of customer services.

Yesterday, Capital G Bank chief executive officer John Kephart assured customers that every effort was being made to minimise disruption caused by the switch-over to new technology.

The new banking system, known as Finacle, is supplied by Infosys and is expected to be launched in July. Finacle is used by banks in 57 countries and its users include ABN Amro, the Emirates Bank of Dubai and the National Commercial Bank in Jamaica.

Capital G Bank is working with Infosys to ensure a smooth transition to the new system.

Mr. Kephart told The Royal Gazette that the technology update would be less problematic for Capital G to implement that it would be for a larger bank.

"At our size, these kinds of packages are essentially pre-built and so it's substantially easier to upgrade," Mr. Kephart said. "It's an advantage of being small and nimble that you can tap into new technology quicker and more cheaply." Some HSBC Bank of Bermuda customers experienced operational problems for weeks after their bank switched over from a network of 11 legacy systems to one new one in the space of one weekend in October 2006.

Mr. Kephart, who worked in the US banking sector for 35 years before taking up the reins at Capital G Bank last November, said system switch-over problems were commonplace at bigger banks.

"There's not a single large bank that does not have these issues," Mr. Kephart said. "I could give hundreds of examples of problems in the US when large organisations are trying to upgrade."

In Capital G Bank's case, he said: "A great deal of planning has taken place to minimise any unnecessary impact to our customers so that we may introduce our new banking system with assurance that our clients will not be disrupted."

Mr. Kephart said times had changed and banking technology had to keep pace. Banking used to be based on cheques, he added, but in 2008 customers were dealing with their bank business on their computers and phones and rarely needed to physically go to the bank. The new platform would increase operational efficiency and be the basis for future innovation, he said.

Capital G Bank has expanded rapidly since acquiring its licence as a full service bank in 2001. It has more than 42,000 clients — a number equivalent to two-thirds of Bermuda's population. By the end of last year, it held $940 million in deposits and its loans totalled $719 million.

The Bank grew out of the Gibbons Deposit Company, which was founded in the early 1930s and based in the Gibbons Company department store. Mr. Kephart believes the high percentage of the population which banks with the company is a legacy of the old savings company.

"The Bermuda banking sector is very interesting because it's basically like a town of 60,000 people, but it's got a world financial centre in the middle of it," Mr. Kephart said. "So you have the normal activities that you'd see in any small town, but you also see the extraordinarily sophisticated things the international business sector is doing."

Asked how Capital G Bank competes with and differentiates itself from the two largest banks, HSBC Bank of Bermuda and Butterfield Bank, Mr. Kephart said Capital G Bank's focus is on the local market and it prides itself on being "customer-centric".

"The main difference is that we are 100-percent local, while the other banks are multi-jurisdictional," the CEO said.

"The challenge for any bank is to build a relationship with the client. Customer service is probably where we've been most successful. If a client wants something, we will do it much quicker than it's typically available at a larger bank."

The new banking system will help the Bank to achieve its aim of further expanding in new market segments such as business banking, international banking and the diversified wealth management offered by its Select Banking arm.

Customers with questions about Capital G's new banking system should contact its customer care centre at 296-6969 or e-mail innovate@capitalg.bm.