How Noria Consulting helped the largest Norwegian bank adapt to legislative change and become compliant with regulatory demands through test management.

Following an increase in consumer loans in the Norwegian population, the Norwegian government passed the Debt Information Act to prevent debt problems among private consumers. New debt registers have been developed to ensure optimal credit assessments, and financial institutions are now required to collect debt information from the registers in loan application processes.

THE CHALLENGE

Following the passage of the Debt Information Act, the bank needed to understand the effect of the legislative changes and implement the necessary technological changes. They called on test managers from Noria Consulting to help develop test strategies, navigate unclear regulatory requirements, manage a team of testers and coordinate testing efforts across the entire value chain.

HOW WE HELPED

Working closely with executives and employees from the client, Noria Consulting was responsible for testing the flow of batch and event data from core banking systems to a brand-new cloud solution, functioning as a buffer between debt registers and on-premise systems.

The project and testing were divided into two phases. During the first phase, we helped the client test the sending of batch and event data, from on-premise systems, via the cloud solution, to the debt registers. During the second phase, we helped DNB test extracting data from the debt registers.

In both phases, we started by developing a test strategy. We ensured that all requirements were well-known, understood and approved by all involved parties. We also made sure that all requirements, designed as user stories, were mapped to the appropriate applications and had acceptance criteria.

Going forward, we planned, executed, and managed systems integration tests, user acceptance tests and verification in production with a team of 10 testers. Batch data, event data and API testing were performed to ensure a seamless flow of data from the core banking systems, via overlying platforms, to the cloud solution.

The complexity of the developed systems, solutions and integrations required close collaboration between all involved parties to ensure that the necessary data is delivered to the debt register. Through close collaboration, effective coordination and frequent reporting, we were able to align close to 70 employees across 12 different teams to ensure that testing was executed and delivered on time.

THE RESULTS

To date, the client has successfully implemented all the necessary changes to comply with the Debt Information Act. On the one hand, the debt registers can now access the required data from the bank’s cloud solution daily. On the other, the bank can access data from the debt registers when consumers apply for a loan. Additionally, they can now provide their customers with a full overview of their total collected debts. DNB has not only become compliant but enhanced its customer experience in the process.