Built by practitioners, for the financial services sector.
IT Financial Services was founded in 2011 with a single conviction: that financial institutions deserve technology consultants who truly understand their world — the regulation, the risk, the operational complexity, and the competitive pressure.
15 years of financial services technology.
IT Financial Services was founded in London in 2011 by Richard Holt, following nearly two decades leading technology programmes at Barclays and Deutsche Bank. The firm was built on a simple premise: that the financial services sector was consistently underserved by generalist IT consultancies who lacked the domain depth to navigate its unique complexity.
From our first engagement — a core banking migration for a mid-tier UK lender — we established the principles that still define us today: senior-led delivery, regulatory fluency, and a relentless focus on outcomes rather than outputs.
Over 15 years, we have grown from a boutique advisory to a 200-consultant practice serving over 60 financial institutions across banking, insurance, asset management, and fintech. Our practices span digital transformation, regulatory technology, data & analytics, cybersecurity, payments, and managed services.
We remain privately held, independent, and entirely focused on financial services. That focus is not a constraint — it is our competitive advantage.
IT Financial Services established by Richard Holt with a focus on core banking system modernisation for UK retail banks.
Expanded into regulatory technology as MiFID II and EMIR created significant demand for compliance automation across the sector.
Established our data practice in response to growing demand for enterprise data platforms and real-time analytics in financial services.
Launched our payments consulting capability ahead of the ISO 20022 migration wave and the expansion of open banking across Europe.
Grew our cybersecurity and resilience practice significantly as DORA requirements drove demand for specialist security consulting.
Today we serve over 60 financial institutions across banking, insurance, asset management, and fintech — with 200+ consultants deployed globally.
Principles that govern every engagement.
Domain depth, not generalism
We work exclusively in financial services. Every consultant we deploy has sector-specific experience — not just technology skills applied to a new industry.
Senior-led delivery
The people who win your business are the people who do your work. We do not bait-and-switch with junior staff after the contract is signed.
Regulatory fluency
We understand the regulatory environment our clients operate in. Technology decisions are always made with compliance implications in mind.
Outcomes, not outputs
We measure success by business results — not deliverables produced. If a project is not delivering value, we say so.
Senior practitioners, not account managers.
Every practice is led by a director with 10+ years of hands-on experience in financial services technology.
Richard Holt
Founder & Managing Director
Richard founded IT Financial Services after 18 years leading technology transformation programmes at Barclays and Deutsche Bank. He holds an MSc in Computer Science from Imperial College London and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute for IT.
- Former VP Technology, Barclays
- MSc Computer Science, Imperial College
- FBCS, Chartered IT Professional
Sarah Okonkwo
Director, Regulatory Technology
Sarah leads our RegTech practice, bringing 14 years of experience in compliance technology across FCA-regulated firms. She previously served as Head of Regulatory Reporting at HSBC and has deep expertise in MiFID II, DORA, and AML frameworks.
- Former Head of Reg Reporting, HSBC
- LLM Financial Regulation, UCL
- Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist
Marcus Webb
Director, Digital Transformation
Marcus has delivered over 30 core banking and insurance system migrations across Europe and Asia-Pacific. His background spans architecture, programme delivery, and cloud strategy, with particular expertise in AWS and Azure for regulated workloads.
- Former Enterprise Architect, Lloyds Banking Group
- AWS Certified Solutions Architect (Professional)
- MSc Software Engineering, Edinburgh
Priya Sharma
Director, Data & Analytics
Priya leads our data practice, specialising in enterprise data platform design for financial institutions. She has built data estates for three of the UK's top-ten asset managers and is a recognised expert in Databricks and Snowflake implementations.
- Former Chief Data Architect, Schroders
- Databricks Certified Data Engineer
- BSc Mathematics, Warwick
Ready to work with a team that knows your world?
Book a discovery call with one of our practice directors. No sales pitch — just a direct conversation about your technology challenges.