Backbase launches AI Centre of Excellence in Ho Chi Minh City

The COE will serve as the development hub for Backbase’s AI banking solutions worldwide and will be led by head of AI Chris Shayan, a former CXO at Techcombank and HDBank.

According to Shayan, the COE’s first product launch is targeted within six months of its establishment, reflecting Backbase's confidence in a rapid development cycle.

"Vietnam is a crucial part of our global strategy. Having managed an 800-person team, of which 99 per cent were Vietnamese, I can personally attest to the remarkable potential of Vietnamese talent in technology and innovation," Shayan stated. "At this stage, our focus for the COE is to harness this talent pool to create world-leading AI capabilities that help banks solve business problems on a global scale, leveraging the wealth of knowledge and experience from Backbase’s portfolio of banks and tech experts."

Backbase's strategic decision to establish the COE in Vietnam underscores its commitment to Asia. Vietnam is pegged as the fastest growing digital economy in Southeast Asia and recognised for its rapid digital transformation, innovative spirit, and growing pool of talent.

Asia is a core region for Backbase and Vietnam has become one of the fastest growing markets in Asia, with key banks including Techcombank, TPBank, ABBANK, and OCB driving digital transformation through the Backbase Engagement Banking Platform.

The COE is located near the Saigon Centre in District 1 of Ho Chi Minh City, occupying an entire floor dedicated to advancing AI development. It will bring together a talented team of engineers specialising in web, mobile, backend, AI, machine learning, and large language models, fostering rapid AI development and innovation.

"The centre will harness AI to deepen the value our customers can obtain from the Backbase Engagement Banking Platform, by increasing customer usage and servicing experience, as well as provide access to analytics for informed decision-making," Shayan added. "It aims to vertically integrate AI to uplift customer lifetime value and accelerate development and deployment of products for banks to have access to AI-driven features soon.”

A forecast by McKinsey predicts that generative AI has the potential to create up to $340 billion in value for banks, while still in the nascent stages of AI development in the region. The COE will prioritise practical AI applications to enhance business outcomes, rather than focusing solely on research and development efforts. The goal is to create AI capabilities that accelerate customer lifetime value and engagement, integrating these solutions seamlessly on top of Backbase's existing architecture.

In light of the rapid growth of the use of AI across industries, Kenddrick Chan, senior policy analyst from the Tony Blair Institute, shed light on the possibilities in Vietnam’s labour market in the AI era with VIR’s Hoang Minh.

Vietnam's digital payment landscape is undergoing a remarkable transformation, driven by new regulations and innovative financial solutions.

While AI is a key in the process of innovation and accelerating economic development, it needs support from many sides to strengthen the workforce and related startups.