Considering the threat of the spread of coronavirus in Armenia, DataArt has decided to change the format of the meeting-discussion on “Technology trends in finance”.

Members of the government, representatives of banking, financial, credit, insurance companies, international organizations were invited to the event, organized under the auspices of the Ministry of High-Tech Industry of the Republic of Armenia. The event was scheduled for March 12.

“Changes were made overnight due to the threat of spread of coronavirus. We received letters from a number of participants. As a reputable company, we decided to cancel the meeting to prevent negative consequences. By taking this step, we once again showed that we are a human-centered company, and the safety and the health of both our employees and partners is a priority for us,” Head of DataArt Armenia Arsen Baghdasaryan told Banks.am.

DataArt has conducted a closed panel discussion at DataArt Armenia office. The keynote speakers were: Alexei Utkin, Head of DataArt Data Analytics; Denis Baranov, Head of DataArt Blockchain Center of Excellence; Oleg Komissarov, DataArt Principal Consultant, Finance Practice; and Peter Vaihansky, Senior Vice President of DataArt's Finance Practice. The panel was moderated by Suren Azatyan, DataArt’s VP of Business Development.

The panel discussion was videotaped and in the near future will be sent to the invitees and those who were registered and were willing to take part in the meeting.

“The video will be also posted on Internet as well as on DataArt Armenia’s Facebook page. This way we show that the company is devoted to the “IT without borders” slogan,” said Arsen Baghdasaryan.

 Suren Azatyan, DataArt’s VP of Business Development, told Banks.am that technological developments in the financial sector were the main topic of the discussion.

“Our partners, who hold top positions at DataArt in global data analytics, have not only talked about theoretical topics, but also provided practical real-life examples,” he said.

Speaking about the importance of such discussions, Suren Azatyan said experience exchange was a great way to learn.

“Being a small market Armenia has its place in the international arena. Armenian experts occupy vital top positions in a number of big companies, which proves that even if our market is small it doesn’t mean that it’s not interesting for international experts. Inviting international guests is the optimal format for exchanging experience in order to learn new skills, introduce them to our market and develop further,” Azatyan said.

Finances and key IT trends

Peter Vaihansky, Senior Vice President of DataArt's Finance Practice, told Banks.am about the main topics of panel discussion.

DataArt works with numerous leading financial organizations, banks, stock exchanges and other companies, which are actively modernizing their technologies. This is why we have the opportunity to follow in which direction technologies evolve. Some of those trends were on the agenda of our panel discussion.

The most important of those trends is the widespread introduction of data analytics (“big data” and “analytics”) and how it changes the business and decision-making processes in various spheres and various financial companies.

Another megatrend is the introduction of cloud computing. It’s a paradigm, bringing about tremendous changes. These processes are not new though, and cloud computing has been gradually introduced for about 10 years now. Companies that were engaged in cloud computing earlier have accumulated a lot of experience, and today, more and more companies are able to overcome the fears that might have previously stopped them from using those technologies. Not only the technologists but business managers and executives should understand what it is, what business values are hidden behind that trend and why they should be involved.

On the whole, we can say that cloud computing is the “fabric” on which “patterns” are formed: data analytics, machine learning, artificial intelligence... Clouds combine these directions and make possible, for example, the business intelligence- business analysis and data processing.

There is also a somewhat “exotic” trend - blockchain technologies, which the whole world is also talking about. How can we figure it out, what is it, is it worth getting involved in and why? A lot of experience has been accumulated over the last two-three years. We are not only talking about blockchain, but also working with it. Our big clients have production systems, they work with these technologies, and we have a lot to say about blockchain.

Another widespread trend is the artificial intelligence and machine learning. Everyone wants to do something in this field but doesn’t know how. This direction has huge potential and drastically changes business processes. We have a lot to say about this as well: what companies use them and how, how these technologies help them increase their efficiency and make money.

Mari Taryan
Photos: Emin Aristakesyan