Choosing a cloud provider may seem simple but there is a lot to consider before making the leap. Case in point is Old Mutual which has announced that Amazon Web Services (AWS) will be its preferred cloud provider.

With help from AWS, Old Mutual will migrate some 1 000 applications to the cloud allowing it to shut down its data centres by 2022.

“AWS provides us with the depth and breadth of services we need to innovate like a startup, with the security expected from Africa’s oldest and most trusted financial services company,” said Johnson Idesoh, Chief Information Officer at Old Mutual.

The financial services provider will implement AWS analytics and machine learning services into its business processes but most interestingly, Old Mutual plans to create a data lake it plans on calling the Information Fabric.

The firm says that historically, it has been rather tricky for customers to get a full view of their financial portfolio because their information was spread out across multiple sources.

Using the Information Fabric, Old Mutual will be able to give customers a better overview of their profile as all information will be stored in the aforementioned data lake.

The firm has also created a chatbot using Amazon Lex that can assist customers instantly, 24 hours a day.

“Financial services organizations are turning to AWS because we offer them the broadest capabilities, best performance, and highest levels of security,” said Vice President and Managing Director EMEA for AWS, Andy Isherwood.

“For nearly two centuries, Old Mutual has been trusted by people across Africa. By moving off rigid, legacy technologies to flexible and scalable cloud technologies on AWS, Old Mutual will continue to maintain trust and delight their customers by offering more personalised services,” Isherwoord added.

The point of all of this is that Old Mutual customers have a better experience when dealing with the firm.

Old Mutual has said that it will be looking at implementing other AWS machine learning solutions including Amazon SageMaker and Amazon Personalize among others.