Modernising SFD’s Financial System

The challenge 

SFD’s internal financial system was central to its mission but had become critically outdated. Based on monolithic architecture and legacy tools, the platform suffered from operational limitations, technical debt, and risk

exposure.

The accounting team relied heavily on Excel and manual processes, which created significant workload, reduced accuracy, and hampered responsiveness. Additionally, the existing infrastructure didn’t allow for

incremental adoption of modern technologies or seamless integration with external systems—both crucial for managing international, multi-currency transactions.

Adding to this complexity, SFD operates in a highly regulated environment, as is typical in international finance—and even more so for a public-sector institution managing development funds. Every change to systems or

processes had to be traceable, auditable, and fully compliant with financial and data governance regulations. This added a critical layer of difficulty, as the system overhaul not only had to meet technical and functional

requirements but also ensure strict adherence to regulatory standards.

The absence of automation, poor system performance, and lack of interoperability posed not only productivity issues but also organisational risk. A single error in reporting or financial management could affect entire loan cycles and the countries receiving them.

SFD urgently needed a solution that would eliminate these pain points and support its long-term digital transformation goals.

Our Solution

To address these complex challenges, we designed an end-to-end solution focused on modernising SFD’s core financial platform, starting with the General Ledger (GL) module. Our strategy was built around three core pillars:

1. Technical modernisation, shifting to scalable, resilient microservices and modular architecture.
2. Deep automation of financial processes, eliminating manual bottlenecks and boosting data accuracy.
3. Close collaboration with the client, using agile methodologies and eXtreme Programming (XP) practices to ensure technical quality and business alignment throughout the project.

Our results-driven approach enabled us to deliver a high-impact transformation without disrupting day-to-day operations, laying the foundation for future expansion.

What we delivered

We delivered a fully modernised financial platform, designed from the ground up to meet both SFD’s current operational needs and its long-term digital vision. The initial focus was on the General Ledger (GL) module—a core component of any financial system—but the scope extended to functional, technical, and organisational improvements.

Key deliverables included:

• A robust, IFRS-compliant Chart of Accounts (CoA) with clear transaction classification
• Fully automated financial reporting, eliminating reliance on spreadsheets
• A modernised user interface for faster, more intuitive access to key financial data
• Seamless integration with existing legacy systems via APIs and architectural decoupling
• An extensible solution designed to support future digitalisation phases

In parallel with the core platform development, our platform engineering lead oversaw critical upgrades to several outdated systems that had become obsolete and posed security risks. These upgrades also enabled the adoption of modern features to ensure long-term maintainability and efficiency.

Upgraded platforms included:

• GitLab: from version 15.X to 17.X
• Kubernetes: from version 1.21 to 1.28
• Loki: Helm chart upgraded from v2.x to v6.x
• Various Virtual Machines (VMs): Oracle OS upgraded to the latest version

Why these upgrades mattered:

• Security: Legacy platforms contained known vulnerabilities. Upgrading closed those gaps and ensured alignment with the latest security standards.
• Maintainability: Modernised platforms are easier to manage, support, and scale.
• Feature Enhancements: Newer versions introduced valuable features not present in earlier versions.

As a result, the organisation saw a significant improvement in platform security and operational resilience, laying a solid foundation for continued digital transformation.

Modern Technical Architecture

The technology redesign was critical to long-term sustainability. We adopted a microservices-based architecture, allowing components to scale independently, improving resilience and simplifying maintenance.

We applied Domain-Driven Design (DDD) to shift business logic into code rather than relying on the database. Inter-service communication was designed to be asynchronous, increasing system fault tolerance.

We implemented infrastructure automation and orchestration using Kubernetes and Argo CD, enabling repeatable, reliable deployments. Authentication and access control were centralized using Keycloak, enhancing security and governance.

This modernization effort has made the system more agile, modular, secure, and adaptable to organizational growth.

Results & Success Metrics

The modernization’s impact was both immediate and measurable. Tasks that previously took hours were reduced to seconds. The new platform not only optimized time and resources but also significantly improved data quality, traceability, and financial insight.

Total reduction in manual effort:  -90% operational effort on report generation

Strategic Impact

The new platform has transformed SFD’s financial operations—from a rigid, error-prone environment to a modern, secure, and efficient system. Teams can now respond faster to audits, generate insights easily, and manage global financial operations with increased reliability and confidence.

More broadly, the project set a new organisational benchmark: SFD now has a scalable, extensible technical foundation that can be replicated across other departments—supporting its long-term digital transformation agenda.

Human Capability Development

A key goal was to ensure internal capacity-building within SFD. To achieve this, we established a Technical Community of Practice and provided continuous technical coaching to internal teams.

This allowed SFD to:

• Take full ownership of the new platform
• Adopt modern engineering practices (TDD, CI/CD, DevOps)
• Improve cross-functional collaboration between product, design, and engineering
• Reduce dependence on external vendors for routine maintenance

These capabilities have strengthened SFD’s internal resilience and positioned the organization to adapt more effectively to future technological and operational challenges.