Tech Earns Interest at Wachovia

Wachovia’s roots are in the southeastern United States, but it is branching out across the globe. Wachovia, based in Charlotte, N.C., has $706.4 billion in assets and $408.1 billion in total deposits, with a presence extending to the West Coast of the United States, Europe and, most recently, Asia. Susan Certoma, the CIO of Wachovia’s Corporate and Investment Bank, has been in IT for more than 20 years. Prior to joining Wachovia in 2004, Certoma was a vice president at Goldman Sachs & Co., leading the global sales/trading technology organization. Certoma recently spoke with eWEEK Editor Debra Donston about the initiatives she is driving at Wachovia.

Could you explain your role at Wachovia?

I’m the CIO, Corporate and Investment Bank, at Wachovia. The Corporate and Investment Bank is one of four major businesses in Wachovia as a financial services institution, and it is accountable for approximately 25 percent of the bottom-line revenue for the bank.

I support what you traditionally know as capital markets types of businesses that you would see at a Goldman or a Morgan. In addition, it spreads beyond those businesses to [Department of] Treasury finance, trade services, correspondent banking, capital financing, etc. So we are doing some very deliberate programs and work in my organization, which is an organization of about 1,500 people from a technology perspective.

Wachovia has been growing of late. In what areas is the institution now located?

We are global. We have a large base in Charlotte, since, historically, we are a southeastern financial institution. But that has changed over the years. We now have significant presence in the United States in Philadelphia and New York for the businesses I cover, and we’ve just begun to expand to the West Coast.

We have also expanded into Europe—most notably, London, but with work going on in Frankfurt and Geneva. We also have a beginning presence in Asia—mostly in Hong Kong but also in Shanghai, and you’ll see significant growth in the Asia region over the next two to three years.

What are some of the key initiatives your group is working on?

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