2024’s Technology Failures in Finance: What We Must Fix for 2025

Throughout 2024, technology failures, compliance lapses, and gaps in operational resilience hit the headlines for financial services organisations. Prominent names in the industry suffered major service outages, mobile banking failures, and compliance breaches which left customers frustrated, regulators concerned, and institutions under pressure to improve.

By reflecting on these setbacks and implementing forward-looking Quality Engineering (QE) strategies, financial institutions can reduce risk, ensure compliance, strengthen resilience, and safeguard customer trust. This article examines the key lessons from 2024 and how they can shape a more resilient and quality-driven financial services sector in 2025.

Key Learnings from 2024: Learning from Past Mistakes

Last year exposed vulnerabilities in technology infrastructure, with major banks experiencing outages that disrupted critical services. These failures emphasised the need for more robust QE practices:

IT Outages Across Major Banks: In 2024, significant IT outages affected four leading high street banks, leaving customers unable to access accounts and make payments. These outages were linked to outdated IT systems and insufficient resilience planning, causing widely publicised customer dissatisfaction and drop in share prices.

Mobile Banking Failures: the banking app for a major high street bank suffered multiple outages throughout 2024, including a major incident in August that left thousands of customers unable to access their accounts or pay bills. The disruption coincided with the last weekday of the month, a time when many employees receive their payslips and prepare to pay their monthly bills.

Financial Crime Failures: In December 2024, a major digital bank was fined £20.8 million by the FCA for failing to implement adequate financial crime systems and controls. These deficiencies allowed for serious lapses in anti-money laundering measures, including inadequate customer due diligence and transaction monitoring, posing significant risks to financial integrity.

Compliance Failures in Payment Systems: In 2024, a prominent payment service provider was fined $46 million by regulators for breaches in anti-money laundering regulations. The review highlighted significant gaps in the company's systems, particularly in assessing potential misuse of its services for money laundering or terrorist financing.

Actionable QE Strategies for 2025

To stay ahead, financial institutions must rethink their approach to quality with strategies that address both the vulnerabilities exposed in 2024 and the challenges of an evolving market. By following these actionable steps organisations can build stronger, more resilient and compliant systems while maintaining a competitive edge:

Proactively Modernise Legacy Systems: Invest in upgrading outdated IT systems to mitigate risks of outages and improve operational resilience. Regularly assess infrastructure to identify vulnerabilities and prioritise necessary updates.

Strengthen Mobile Banking Resilience: Implement rigorous performance and resilience testing for mobile applications to ensure they can cope with high-traffic periods such as payroll dates. Safeguard seamless user experiences by adopting robust monitoring tools and proactive issue resolution mechanisms.

Enhance Anti-Money Laundering Controls: Develop advanced compliance frameworks and strengthen transaction monitoring systems to ensure adherence to regulatory standards and minimise financial crime risks. Consider integrating machine learning models to improve detection of high-risk activities.

Simulate Real-World Scenarios: Conduct scenario-based testing to simulate payment system stress, security risks, and transaction surges. Such testing will enhance readiness to handle real-world challenges and safeguard customers.

Embed Cross-Functional Collaboration: Build collaborative processes between compliance, development, and Quality Engineering teams to create a unified approach to financial crime prevention and operational stability.

Foster a Culture of Continuous Improvement: Provide teams with training and tools to continuously iterate and enhance system quality. Prioritise feedback loops from incidents and near-misses to refine processes and systems.

Looking Ahead: Elevating Financial Services in 2025

As financial institutions tackle an increasing array of challenges, strategic investment in QE will not only address regulatory and operational demands but also help prevent the kind of high-profile technology failures witnessed in 2024.

At Roq, we specialise in helping banks and financial services organisations deliver quality outcomes at pace, while also delivering impactful time and cost savings. From navigating ISO 20022 compliance to modernising core platforms, we’ve supported institutions in delivering projects on time, on budget, and without disruption.

Roq is proud to support some of the most prominent names in financial services. Most notably managing the renewal of the UK’s Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system, a vital component of the nation’s payments infrastructure. By providing comprehensive test automation, quality assurance, and programme support, Roq ensured compliance and the successful delivery of this transformative initiative, all while maintaining uninterrupted business-as-usual (BAU) operations.

Ready to elevate your Quality Engineering strategy? Contact us today here or via ask@roq.co.uk to explore how we can support your success in 2025.