Subsidiary KBZ bank will kick off the conglomerate’s investment in cloud and mobile-optimized IT infrastructure, as well as modern productivity and collaboration tools to enhance competitiveness
MYANMAR, September 18, 2015 – Microsoft today announced that Kanbawza (KBZ) Group of Companies, one of the largest conglomerates in Myanmar, is modernizing its IT infrastructure with Microsoft solutions to enable its workforce to be more collaborative, productive and to better serve customers as it becomes mobile-ready and cloud-ready.
Kicking off the rollout will be one of its flagship companies KBZ Bank, the largest commercial bank in the country, currently operating over 300 branches and 350 ATMs and over 80 currency exchange counters in Myanmar. The digital transformation journey will at a later stage involve the other subsidiaries of KBZ Group, which includes interests in mining, banking, aviation, insurance, manufacturing, agriculture, real estate, trading, healthcare, tourism and hospitality.
As Myanmar opens its doors to foreign financial services companies, KBZ Group’s investment in a more robust IT infrastructure, cloud and mobile solutions will better enable it to compete more effectively in a very dynamic marketplace.
Specifically for KBZ Bank, the company will transform its IT infrastructure with Microsoft SQL Server 2012, Windows Server 2012, and System Center 2012, enabling it to deliver cloud and mobile-optimized IT services in a secure environment covering more than 7,000 PCs. The leading Myanmar bank will provide world-class productivity and collaboration tools to its workforce with Windows 10 devices, Skype for Business and SharePoint. KBZ Bank expects to fully implement this IT transformation in 12 months.
KBZ Group of Companies expects to benefit significantly from leveraging Microsoft’s cloud and mobile-ready technology for enterprise-wide collaboration.
Stephane Lamoureux, IT Director, KBZ Group of Companies, said: “This partnership not only enables us to grow our business, but also raises our brand value in both the country and region due to our commitment to security and intellectual property rights. For example, Microsoft SharePoint, Skype for Business and Office Pro Plus will alleviate a lot of current mundane and manual processes at the organizational level and will help maximize efficiency.”
The Enterprise Agreement with KBZ Group of Companies is Microsoft’s largest IT deal in Myanmar to date. High capacity servers and network infrastructure will be deployed to host all applications in future based on demand and growth. Enterprise Mobility solutions will also be deployed in the near future, which will further raise efficiency of both people and processes.
Michelle Simmons, General Manager, Southeast Asia New Markets, Microsoft Asia Pacific, said: “Microsoft has established its presence in Myanmar since 2013, and this latest partnership marks a major milestone for us as we grow our presence in both the country and the region. With our IT partner Myanmar Information Technology, Microsoft is committed to transforming the way Myanmar organizations, businesses and individuals transact and interact in a hyper-connected world.”
The deal reflects the rapid development and potential of Myanmar’s financial services industry, which is set to see more embark on the course of digital transformation.
“This agreement with KBZ Group is testament to the focus Microsoft has had in the growing demand in emerging markets for enterprise grade, world class technology that people and organisations can trust. Myanmar’s banking industry is on the fast track to modernization,” said Bertrand Launay, Vice President, Microsoft Asia Pacific. “We look forward to growing our presence in Myanmar to enable its organizations, the IT ecosystem and its people to do more, connect and transact digitally as the country takes on a rapid path towards growth.”
###
About Microsoft
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) is the leading platform and productivity company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world, and its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
