Top Banks Should Leverage Styra for DORA Compliance: Unlocking $158 Million in Savings Annually

In today’s rapidly evolving regulatory landscape, banks are under increasing pressure to ensure their digital resilience, especially with the European Union’s Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) now in force. Compliance is not just a matter of ticking boxes; it’s about ensuring operational continuity, protecting customer trust, and avoiding costly disruptions or regulatory penalties. The question every bank executive should be asking is: How can we efficiently comply with DORA while driving business value?

For top global banks, the answer lies in leveraging advanced policy-based platforms like Styra. Not only does Styra help financial institutions meet DORA's stringent requirements, but it also delivers significant operational and financial benefits. In fact, a top 20 global bank could see $158 million in annual savings by implementing Styra's platform. Here’s how.

1. Comprehensive ICT Risk Management Saves $29.85M Annually

DORA mandates that financial institutions have robust ICT risk management systems in place to prevent disruptions. Styra’s Open Policy Agent (OPA) automates the enforcement of security policies across all systems, ensuring that unauthorized access is blocked and risks are mitigated before they become costly incidents. For a top 20 bank, preventing just five cybersecurity breaches annually—each costing an average of $5.97M—would result in $29.85M in savings. That’s nearly $30M saved by simply automating policy management.

2. Enhanced Governance and Oversight Adds $13.7M to the Bottom Line

Banks struggle with complex governance structures, especially when it comes to maintaining oversight of ICT risks. Styra’s centralized governance capabilities streamline the management and auditing of security policies, ensuring compliance with DORA. By automating audit preparation, a bank can save approximately $3M annually in labor costs. And, avoiding just one major non-compliance fine under DORA—which could cost up to $10.7M—adds another $10.7M in savings. In total, this leads to $13.7M in annual savings by improving governance.

3. Incident Reporting and Response Saves $10M

DORA requires banks to report ICT-related incidents promptly, and delays can result in hefty fines. Styra automates the detection, logging, and reporting of incidents, ensuring compliance without manual intervention. Reducing the response time for major incidents could save $1M per incident, and with an average of five major incidents per year, that’s $5M in savings. Furthermore, avoiding fines for late reporting could save an additional $5M annually. In total, that’s $10M saved every year.

4. Stronger Third-Party Risk Management Protects $13M

Third-party vendors can introduce significant risks to a bank’s ICT environment. DORA mandates that banks manage these risks effectively, and Styra’s fine-grained access controls allow banks to manage vendor access and enforce security protocols. By reducing vendor-related downtime by just 10 hours a year—at a cost of $300,000 per hour—a bank can save $3M. Additionally, preventing just one third-party breach, which could cost up to $10M, leads to total savings of $13M annually.

5. Resilience Testing and Continuous Assurance Saves $7M

Continuous testing is a critical component of DORA compliance. With Styra, banks can automate resilience testing, ensuring systems are stress-tested and vulnerabilities are addressed before they lead to failures. Avoiding just two major operational failures annually could save $6M, and automating resilience testing could save an additional $1M in testing costs. This brings the total to $7M saved annually by ensuring operational resilience.

6. Cross-Border Compliance Simplified, Saving $15M

For global banks, operating in multiple jurisdictions means navigating various regulatory frameworks. Styra simplifies compliance by centralizing policy management, ensuring that DORA requirements in the EU are met while maintaining compliance with regulations in other regions. Streamlining cross-border compliance could save $5M annually in legal and audit costs. Furthermore, avoiding potential fines from non-EU regulatory bodies could save an additional $10M, bringing total savings to $15M.

7. Overall ROI: A 3071% Return on Investment

By automating policy enforcement, reducing manual security efforts, and protecting revenue from disruptions, Styra delivers substantial value. For a top 20 global bank, these savings add up to $158.55M annually. Given the estimated annual cost of implementing Styra at $5M, the ROI is a staggering 30.71x, or 3071%. Even more impressive is the payback period: Banks would recoup their investment in just 11 days.

Conclusion: A Strategic Investment in Compliance and Resilience

Banks today are not only facing regulatory challenges but also increasing pressure to protect their operations from cyber threats and ICT failures. Styra’s platform provides a powerful solution that ensures compliance with DORA, strengthens operational resilience, and delivers an impressive return on investment.

If you’re leading a financial institution and looking to secure your operations while driving significant cost savings, the decision to invest in Styra is clear. With potential savings of $158 million annually and a payback period of just 11 days, Styra is the key to unlocking both compliance and business value.

By automating DORA compliance with Styra, banks can protect themselves from risks, avoid costly penalties, and streamline operations—all while delivering substantial financial returns. Can your bank afford to miss out on these benefits?

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