The Bank of Saga Ltd.
The Bank of Saga Ltd. Transforms Internal Operations with Unified Data Integration Platform.
Automating Customer Notifications and Streamlining System Workflows with HULFT Square.
Key Results
- Fully automated customer notifications through system integration
- Reduced manual workload by automating up to 50 daily tasks (15–30 minutes each)
- Minimized risk of data errors and miscommunication
- Completed implementation in under one month, enabling rapid operational rollout
Summary
The Bank of Saga Ltd. a regional financial institution with over 100 branches across Japan, has made digital transformation a strategic priority to improve customer experience and operational efficiency. As part of this initiative, the bank launched a new mobile app in 2023 and continues to expand its functionality to support end-to-end digital banking.To streamline operations behind the scenes, the bank implemented HULFT Square as its centralized data integration platform. By connecting core systems, including accounting, internal infrastructure, and a SaaS-based email delivery tool, HULFT Square enabled the full automation of customer notifications. This eliminated time-consuming manual tasks, reduced operational risk, and laid the foundation for broader digital innovation.
Challenge
As the bank’s mobile app user base expanded, managing address changes and other updates triggered an increasing number of manual email notifications. Staff had to verify identification documents, check for email address errors, draft messages, and send confirmations, requiring 15 to 30 minutes per case. With up to 50 cases daily, one or two full-time employees were needed solely for this process.
Yasuhiko Ureshino
Yasuhiko Ureshino of the IT Control Department described the impact of automation as follows: "We were able to fully automate the process of having the person in charge create an email after confirming that the data changes have been completed, obtaining approval from the manager, and sending it to the customer. With the increase in users, the volume of emails sent also increased, and it was a concern even before the new feature was implemented that it would become impossible to handle the workload manually,
so this is a major achievement. Additionally, while notifications to customers were previously sent via postal mail or phone, the new digital system has eliminated the need for these methods. This has also significantly reduced the psychological pressure on staff, as there is no longer any risk of accidentally mailing to the wrong customer.
Solution
The bank chose HULFT Square over building a custom solution due to its ability to integrate securely with existing SaaS email services and internal systems without requiring a new service contract. Familiarity with DataSpider Servista and HULFT enabled the IT team to leverage similar interfaces and no-code tools, thereby minimizing costs and complexity.
The team completed the integration project in under one month, compared to an estimated three to four months for custom development. The new email notification system went live in August 2024.
Results
The Bank of Saga Ltd. utilized HULFT Square to integrate its mobile app, accounting system, internal operations, and email services into a seamless workflow. When a customer submits a change via the app, the information is extracted, validated, and automatically routed to the appropriate system. Batch processing verifies data consistency before sending completion emails via the SaaS platform. If any issue is detected, alerts are routed back internally.
Manual mail and phone notifications were eliminated, reducing the risk of human error and psychological burden on staff.
Yushin Sasaki
Yushin Sasaki of the IT Control Department highlights operational benefits:
"Thanks to HULFT Square, which enables no-code development, we were able to significantly reduce the amount of work required for app testing. We conducted approximately 20 unit tests, but if we had developed from scratch, we would have needed three to four times that amount. Additionally, we utilize Saison Technology's support services, which have been extremely helpful since the launch of our operations. For example, when we contact them about an error,we receive an accurate response within just a few hours."
Future Vision
The Bank of Saga Ltd. plans to expand HULFT Square’s integration capabilities to other departments, including outbound marketing and direct customer communications. With automated pipelines in place, staff can now focus on strategy while the platform handles execution.
"For example, using HULFT Square connectors, you can share business data with partners via Microsoft SharePoint or build systems that integrate on-premises data with AWS or Azure.HULFT Square can be used in a variety of ways."
Hiroaki Hayashida
Hiroaki Hayashida, Deputy General Manager of the IT Control Department, commented on the broader applications of the platform: “In fact, we have already built a system using Microsoft 365 SharePoint and HULFT Square to securely exchange information between the securities company managing the funds and our customers for the purpose of selling a fund wrap product to our customers. In this way, we plan to continue leveraging HULFT Square as an indispensable tool for connecting data."