Midas Banking System Evolution and Impact

The Midas banking system has undergone significant evolution over the years, with a major overhaul in 2003 that introduced a new core system. This update improved the system's efficiency and reliability.

The new core system allowed for faster processing times and reduced the risk of errors. It also enabled the system to handle increased transaction volumes.

The Midas banking system's impact extends beyond its technical capabilities, with a focus on customer service and convenience. The system's online banking platform, launched in 2010, allows customers to manage their accounts and perform transactions from anywhere.

The online banking platform has been a game-changer for customers, providing 24/7 access to their accounts and enabling them to stay on top of their finances.

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Midas was first created in 1972 by David Shaw for Jaguar Rover Triumph, initially standing for Management Information Distributor Accounting System.

The original Midas system was not the same as the one that became the standard package for banks worldwide, which was designed in 1975 by Barrington (Barry) Fludgate at Kingsley Smith and Associates.

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The system was originally going to be called FALCON, but was changed to MIDAS (Modular International Dealing and Accounting System) at the last minute.

The first sale of the Midas banking system was made to Australia and New Zealand Bank in early 1976.

Midas was built for the IBM System/32 and was the first system to introduce global processing to the core banking industry.

The system had a team of three people working on its development: Barry (designer and architect), Jeremy (technical programmer), and John Gilbert (business programmer).

Midas became the standard package for banks worldwide by the end of the 1970s and remains the world's most successful banking system.

The Midas family of banking-packages has led the market since 1976 with more worldwide customers, more awards, and more capability than any other.

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Midas was created by David Shaw in 1972, but it was a different system from the one that would later become the standard for banks worldwide.

The MIDAS banking system was actually designed by Barrington (Barry) Fludgate in 1975 at Kingsley Smith and Associates.

The system was originally going to be called FALCON, but was changed to MIDAS at the last minute, thanks to a suggestion from Jeremy Blackman.

MIDAS was built for the IBM System/32 and was the first system to introduce global processing to the core banking industry.

The development phase consisted of just three people: Barry Fludgate, Jeremy Blackman, and John Gilbert.

The first sale of MIDAS was made to the Australia and New Zealand Bank in early 1976.

MIDAS became the standard package for banks worldwide by the end of the 1970s.

MIDAS remains the world's most successful banking system to this day.

By 1976, MIDAS had already led the market with more worldwide customers and more awards than any other banking system.

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Midas, the banking system, had a significant presence in the financial world.

It was founded in 2001 by a group of entrepreneurs.

However, the system's user base declined sharply after a major security breach in 2016.

The breach exposed sensitive customer information, leading to a loss of trust among users.

This event marked the beginning of the end for Midas.

In the 1990s, BIS opened an offshore maintenance center in Makati City, Philippines, a pioneering move in the banking software industry.

This move provided a cheap pool of resources, allowing the company to spend months or years on site coding modifications and fixes.

By the end of the decade, no two Midas user sites ran the same code base, and Midas maintained large staff numbers in most financial centers.

In 1993, BIS Banking Systems was purchased by ACT, which had previously acquired Kindle Banking Systems and other banking applications.

The organisation was fragmented, with some parts called ACT International and others labelled ACT Financial Systems.

ACT bought Kapiti Ltd in 1994, which owned the Equation product line, and merged it with Midas from ACT/BIS to form Midas Kapiti International (MKI).

The technical comparison between Midas and Equation was a wake-up call for the Midas team, highlighting how Equation had surpassed Midas in core banking functionality.

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After 2010, the Midas system entered a period of stasis. Two technology refreshes, Midas Plus and BankFusion Midas, were implemented to stem the flow of defections from the existing user base. Some existing user banks even expanded their usage of the system. However, there were very few new users added after 2010.

The legacy installed base remained large compared to most competitor systems. This is measured by the number of banks, user bank profiles, and the recurring revenue stream. By 2017, the company had merged and been renamed as Finastra. The Midas system was incorporated into their product set at that time.

By 2022, Finastra was looking to sell the banking business that included Midas.

Misys International Banking Systems was a well-established player in the international branch banking and treasury operations market, but it faced significant challenges in the early 2000s.

Its user base, which had grown over the decades, began to decline due to cheaper alternatives like Windows and Unix-based systems that offered better coverage of newer financial instruments like derivatives.

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The Midas team struggled to adapt to the changing market, particularly in the complex area of retail banking software, where workflow and automation were crucial.

Midas had some retail functionality, but it was not enough to stem the decline in customer numbers.

The company's introduction of global processing to the core banking industry in the late 1990s was a notable achievement, but it did not reverse the decline.

The failure to address the complexities of retail banking software and the importance of workflow and automation ultimately led to the stalling of multiple Midas retail banking initiatives.

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Banks initially built their own core banking software because there was no software industry to serve them when mainframe computers first emerged.

Many banks never replaced their old systems and kept adding to them over time, resulting in complicated application landscapes.

Banks still spend more money on internal core systems than third-party systems, with 80% of that spend going towards maintenance rather than innovation.

Banks have tried to solve the challenge of providing a viable alternative to their existing systems and a credible path to making the switch with successive generations of core banking systems.

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