Introduction

UniCredit Bank Belgrade is a leading financial institution in Serbia, operating as part of the UniCredit Group. With a focus on customer satisfaction, it offers a wide range of banking services for individuals, businesses, and institutions. Committed to excellence and integrity, UniCredit Bank Belgrade plays a vital role in the country’s financial sector, supporting economic growth and development.

Motivation

The parent UniCredit Group has requested daily reports on results pertaining to the Markets segments (Trading financial instruments and Treasury), ALM, and Corporate treasury sales. Due to the specific calculation methods applied to these segments and the precisely defined reporting positions outlined in the reporting scheme, the Bank lacked a single data source for report creation. The aim was to consolidate the necessary data sources and accurately calculate report positions while streamlining the process through automation. Given the need for daily reports, significant emphasis was placed on automating data collection, consolidation, and report generation to minimize staff involvement in data preparation. Failure to fulfill this requirement would result in non-compliance with Group procedures and a lack of comprehensive data coverage for regulatory reporting.

Project

Various teams from the bank and GET collaborated seamlessly to tackle a significant project. Initially initiated by the banks’ Risk team due to their oversight of the report, the responsibility was later transitioned to Controlling, with whom we continued to work closely to enhance the report. Alongside these key business units, the project also involved the bank’s IT team and Project Management Office (PMO).

Implementing the Waterfall methodology, the project unfolded over a concise yet intensive period, spanning 3.5 months. Despite the tight timeline, our teams remained focused and committed to achieving our objectives.

Undoubtedly, the most formidable challenge we faced was the intricacy of calculating daily PnL (Profit and Loss). This complexity stemmed from the multitude of data sources at varying granularities—ranging from daily to yearly—and the necessity to accommodate retroactive manual report corrections. However, through meticulous planning, collaboration, and innovative problem-solving, we successfully navigated these obstacles, ultimately delivering a robust solution that met the project’s objectives and exceeded expectations.

Results

Faced with the challenge of manually compiling reports, UniCredit Bank recognized the need for change. 

Their first step was to implement an automated system for generating daily PnL reports, aiming to improve efficiency and accuracy. We went further, consolidating data from various sources including the core banking system, manually created documents and other group-wide business applications.

Through careful planning and execution, we successfully automated the previously manual process. This not only increased the accuracy of provided values but also significantly reduced errors. What once took several hours each day to prepare was now accomplished in mere minutes, thanks to automation.

However, their journey was not without obstacles. The data transformation and preparation process involved numerous intricate steps, including storing actual results, merging data from different sources, and performing complex calculations such as daily, Month-to-Date, and Year-to-Date values, as well as adjustments for exchange rate differences and net interest income.

Finally, efforts culminated in the successful generation of comprehensive reports, providing valuable insights into banks financial performance.

With the completion of the PnL Reporting Project, the Unicredit bank not only improved its operational efficiency but also gained a deeper understanding of its financial health. 

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