Secure, Comply, Grow: Evolving Priorities for Financial Institutions

Financial institutions across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) are at a turning point. IDC research shows they must simultaneously:

• Defend against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats
• Navigate stringent and fast-evolving regulations
• Drive digital growth—from AI to open banking—while under cost pressure

The institutions that succeed will treat security not as a barrier, but as a catalyst for innovation and competitive advantage. Technology adoption brings speed and scale, but also expands the attack surface and complicates governance. Meanwhile, regulations have elevated operational resilience from a compliance checkbox to a boardroom imperative.

This IDC InfoBrief outlines how leading financial institutions are moving beyond incremental fixes to embed security and compliance as foundations for growth. It highlights how they are:

• Adopting zero-trust principles to simplify controls and contain threats
• Transitioning to real-time compliance through continuous monitoring and seamless reporting
• Embedding security into every innovation cycle so services launch faster and safer
• Building cultures of resilience that connect board priorities with frontline execution

This is more than a roadmap. It is a call to action from IDC for financial institutions to harden their core operations, accelerate compliance, and unlock digital growth through trusted innovation.

Download the report today!