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MCG sees profits double in first half of 2006
 
 MCG, the London-based
holding company for
management consultancies,
which plans to buy the
former consulting arm of
Deloitte in France, said
pre-tax profit for the
six months to June rose
54% at £7.3m compared
with £4.7m last year.
   Group revenues rose
17.7% to £67.3m
year-on-year, with gross
margin up almost two
points at 51.4% and
operating margin up
slightly more at 10.3%.
Operating cash inflow was
healthy at 8.4% of
revenues, versus a 3.7%		 
  
   
 
 
 
 considerably ahead of the
same period last year.
   Proudfoot Consulting,
the sales and operational
consulting division,
posted strong revenue
growth of 44% to £51.7m,
with operating margins
(stripping out a
provision release) more
than doubling at 16.3%.
The consultancy made good
progress in all
geographic areas.
   Parson posted revenue
down 26% at £15.7m, with
operating margin of minus
11.8% (versus 4.9% profit
margin in H1 2005).
   MCG said the weak		 
 performance in Parson's
North American operation
is being addressed, with
the division's pipeline
in North America showing
“good improvements” and
progress should be
visible in the fourth
quarter. Chief executive
Kevin Parry said Parson
Consulting has shown good
revenue growth outside of
North America.
   Proudfoot Consulting
and Parson Consulting
businesses have excellent
medium term prospects,
the board added.
   MCG continues to
invest in its sales front		 
 end, and has opened an
office in Brazil
specialising in
consulting for natural
resources producers.
   The Group said it
continues to be
interested in making
acquisitions of
businesses that broaden
its consulting offerings
and in widening the
coverage of Parson
Consulting and Ineum in
geographies outside their
existing operations.
   		 
 outflow in the first half
of 2005.
   "Whilst it remains too
early to comment on the
outcome for the year as a
whole because work to be
won in the remainder of
the year is a key
determinant of the
result, we remain
confident that the
business overall will
continue to perform
well," said MCG.
   The group said revenue
for the period is		 
 
Zurich Banking to replace core legacy systems with Infosys' Finacle
 
 Zurich Financial
Services, one of the
leading financial
services organisations in
Europe, is to implement
Infosys Technologies’
Finacle Universal Banking
Solution across the UK,
Ireland and the Isle of
Man.
   The Zurich Banking
Business Unit is		 
 replacing its existing
legacy systems with
Finacle core banking and
CRM solutions and
standardising its
processes and systems
across its three banking
brands – Zurich Bank,
Dunbar Bank and Zurich
Bank International.
   Zurich Banking is the
latest in a series of		 
 client wins that Infosys
has announced recently.
In the last 12 months,
seven banks across EMEA
have chosen to replace
their legacy platforms
with Finacle to remove
complexities and reduce
costs.
   Finacle will provide
Zurich Banking with a
powerful new generation		 
 technology platform to
enable it to expand its
business further by
attracting new customers
and maximising
cross-selling and
up-selling opportunities
with existing clients.
Through the platform’s
multi-entity,
multi-currency
capabilities and the		 
 ability to define and
track SLAs, the new
platform is expected to
deliver significantly
improved customer service
across all three banks.
   		 
 
FSA signs IS outsourcing contact with three service providers
 
 The Financial Services
Authority (FSA), which
regulates the financial
services industry, has
signed a four-year
agreement with Capgemini,
Tata Consultancy Services
(TCS) and Xansa to
transform its Information		 
 Systems Division's
capability.
   "The agreement enables
us to strengthen the
alignment with our
business priorities and
will give us the
flexibility to meet the
challenges facing a		 
 modern regulator," said
Darryl Salmons, IS
director at the FSA.
   Capgemini, Tata
Consultancy and Xansa
were selected because of
their “cultural fit and
strong track records in
the UK financial services		 
 industry”, according to
the FSA.
   The 2005 a review of
the FSA’s IT function,
commissioned by the then
newly appointed IT
director Salmons,
recommended the selection
of three external		 
 suppliers, saying that
“the FSA’s IS
organisation is very
immature and is far short
of being efficient”.