Corporate Vision Issue 10 2018

CORPORATE VISION / Issue 10 2018 9 industries throughout Canada. By providing this service, customers are getting competitive loans and leases usually right at the point of sale, when they are purchasing the item. Building a strong culture of innovation A culture of innovation has been built into VersaBank since its inception in the early 1990s when David Taylor first came up with the concept of a digital, branchless bank. At the time, the idea of a branchless bank was a novel concept and there wasn’t any software to make it all happen. So, Taylor hired a series of software engineers, who wrote all of their own software. That VersaBank : A Chartered Bank with the Innovation and Nimbleness of a Fintech g formation of a core IT team was not only essential to the successful launch of the branchless bank, but also has been integral to the ongoing success of the company. “At times, we have more software staff than lenders,” smiles Taylor. “We pride ourselves on delivering the most innovative and cutting edge products to the niche markets we service.” Last year, VersaBank established its own VersaBank Innovation Centre of Excellence facility located on the grounds of London’s International Airport, in London, Ontario. This unique, first in class, digital facility provides the infrastructure of VersaBank’s branchless model. It houses both its software development as well as its e-commerce divisions. The purpose was to have both groups work side-by-side in a unique, advanced environment, the result has been the promotion of staff engagement, encourage ongoing communication between the teams and ensure both IT and e-commerce are working hand in hand, so the Bank’s commercial customers receive products that meet their unique needs. It has proven to be an effective and industry leading model. Looking forward Taylor is excited about the future and, being both an innovator and pioneer, is always looking forward to that next challenge. VersaBank’s economic performance has been strong and the company is benefiting from earlier investments in new product offerings, where the development work has been completed and the products, such as the bulk financing and solutions for Trustees in Bankruptcy, continue to grow. “We’ve had a tremendous response from industry and individuals around the world to our VersaVault initiative and I’m quite excited by the team we’ve built around this new offering,” says Taylor. “We brought in a couple of key people from Blackberry to lead this initiative and the results from our beta trial have been very pleasing; we’re looking forward to our public launch.” President and CEO David Taylor