2021-06-17
Bank of Lithuania granted prestigious international award for data management solutions
The Bank of Lithuania has been selected as the winner of the prestigious Central Banking award for its data management initiative – the Data Management Maturity Programme (DAMAMA).
“The rapidly changing data governance and management landscape calls for reforms in a wide range of areas, from the skills of individual staff members to the way data is handled. It is a great honour for the Bank of Lithuania to accept the Central Banking Award for Data Management Initiative, which proves that we are on the right track to becoming a truly data-centric organisation. This award belongs to our entire team who have been a part of bringing new data initiatives to life,” said Gediminas Šimkus, Chairman of the Board of the Bank of Lithuania.
According to Rachael King, Chair of the Central Banking Awards Committee and Associate Editor of Central Banking, the Bank of Lithuania has initiated an impressive data-maturity programme. The DAMAMA programme capitalises on a series of data initiatives and proven technological concepts, which are already yielding results. “The Bank of Lithuania has managed to discontinue some statistical returns, and the amount of time spent collecting data has fallen. The central bank is also now able to tap into new real-time data and accelerate data-based decision-making, crucial in a post-COVID world,” said Ms King.
According to Central Baking, the Bank of Lithuania has been a fast mover when it comes to updating its data infrastructure – a problem many central banks are wrestling with. The DAMAMA programme breaks down into improvements to data governance, data collection and the data platform. By making greater use of microdata, the Bank of Lithuania will be able to make fewer data requests, and instead aggregate data as needed in-house. The programme should allow the central bank to be more agile in its data handling in the years to come.
Through the DAMAMA programme, over the next four years, the Bank of Lithuania plans to reform its data governance framework, reporting data collection, data storage and analytics. In each of these fields, the central bank will seek to centralise and standardise processes, deploy modern data technologies, enhance data integration and access, thus opening up wider possibilities for data-based decision making in the supervision of financial market participants, implementing macroprudential policy and ensuring the stability of the entire financial system.
By streamlining reporting procedures and consolidating the applied technologies, the Bank of Lithuania will aim to reduce the administrative burden for financial market participants and other data providers. The programme includes a RegTech solution introduced in spring 2020, which has been designed to automate reporting procedures.
This year will be dedicated to planning and refining changes envisioned under the DAMAMA programme. It will be implemented in stages and completed by 2025.
Winners in 18 categories were selected during Central Banking’s 4th Annual Fintech & RegTech Global Awards, including such institutions as central banks of European countries, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
This is the third Central Banking award received by the Bank of Lithuania for its innovative approach. In 2018, the central bank was granted the first Catalyst Award, while in 2020 it received the Global Impact Award.