Integrated Design of eBanking Architecture

Abstract

This chapter describes a service-oriented framework for integrated design of eBanking architecture (IDEA) in the financial services industry. A pragmatic approach is developed to help facilitate sustainable design practices in migrating conventional n-tier online systems to a service-oriented computing paradigm, composed of Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA), Integration (SOI), Process (SOP) and Management (SOM). This comprehensive model comprises 5 modules, namely, Hybrid Methodology, Architecture Baseline Model, Service Patterns, Enterprise Service Model, and Domain-specific Model. A hybrid methodology is designed to leverage the benefits of both top-down and bottom-up approaches, in which a converging layer is conceived to incorporate the latest technologies such as portal, mashup, RIA, process orchestration, service aggregations, collaborations, choreography, business rule engine, virtualization, cloud computing, Web 2.0/3.0, and so on. A multi-tier architecture baseline model is constructed to cope with the architecture complexity in a disciplined manner. E-business patterns are applied to categorize diverse banking services, which form the foundation for subsequent selection justifications of appropriate technologies, platforms, products, tools, and infrastructure. Furthermore, common business functionalities are built in the enterprise service model as shared services to be reused across lines of business as well as delivery channels, along with the sharable technical services and infrastructure services. A domain-specific model for the Internet Channel is defined by operationalizing the hybrid methodology in a particular portfolio. In addition, a holistic reusable application platform is introduced to address the key design considerations and concerns in the implementation of service-oriented solutions. Various challenges and best-practice recommendations are also articulated in the context.