IBM acquires software company OpenPages

BANGALORE, INDIA: IBM Corp announced on Wednesday that it has acquired OpenPages, a privately held software company that develops risk and compliance management systems for enterprises.

With growing volumes of data, disconnected systems, constantly changing regulatory compliance challenges and a dynamic business climate, gaining a complete view of an organization's risk exposure is increasing in complexity, said IBM.

While making this announcement, IBM said that managing risk is a top priority today for businesses in all industries including finance, insurance, retail, healthcare and energy and utilities.

A recent IBM study of 1900 global CFOs and senior finance leaders revealed that risk management has risen in priority by 93 per cent since 2005. The survey also noted that two out of three companies had encountered material risk events within the past three years.

"Unforeseen risk can hurt a company's bottom line as well as its brand reputation," said Rob Ashe, general manager, business analytics, IBM. "Integrating risk management systems across once-divided units and functions is essential to seeing the bigger picture. The combination of IBM and OpenPages will provide a holistic and consistent approach to risk management helping companies combine that insight with performance management to drive better decision making."

More than 200 clients across a variety of industries are using OpenPages software to help them tackle their information-related challenges and manage risk and compliance issues. In fact, some of the world's largest financial services and energy and utilities businesses address risk and compliance with OpenPages software, added IBM. These include Allianz, Barclays, Carnival Corporation, Duke Energy, SunTrust, TIAA CREF and Williams.

"Everyday we hear firsthand about the risk and compliance management issues that businesses face, and its clear that a new information architecture is needed to delivery valuable risk intelligence that empowers risk-based decision making said Michael Duffy, president and CEO, OpenPages. "The combination of IBM and OpenPages software, business process insights and industry expertise will address this need, helping businesses tackle their complex risk challenges.