Rather than build one proprietary system, the bank has opted to form a network of partnerships with specialists in the technology field, thus creating a platform where components can be added or removed as per the clients' needs. This makes the company more "nimble" in the market place according to Simon Maclean, head of global fund services business technology in Hong Kong.

"We are creating a global platform that can service the whole range of funds," Maclean told FinanceAsia.com adding that the programme had started in the United Staes, spread across to Europe and was now growing into Asia. "We can find the best of breed and plug it into our architecture. That means our time to market is much quicker."

Another goal for the bank is to develop its partnerships to take its systems to a higher level and integrate capabilities such as data mining and data warehousing, incorporating information from its joint venture partners such as Singapore's UOB.

"In the future we will combine data elements so that clients can not only look at information about their funds, but also about the investors in their funds," FinanceAsia quoted Maclean as saying.

The bank has also established a partnership with American software provider Advent which provides a real-time global accounting system known as Geneva that is being used by Bank of Bermuda for its Asian hedge funds.