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Wijs & van Oostveen

Toward a modernized and future-proof cloud landscape
Wijs & van Oostveen (W&O), one of the largest independent asset managers in the Netherlands, has been active in the international financial markets for more than 30 years. Personal service, clear agreements and a well-considered approach are important conditions for W&O to work with clients. A modern, secure and compliant IT infrastructure is crucial to ensure business continuity and customer satisfaction.

Modernization 

Wijs & van Oostveen (W&O) had an urgent need to modernize the IT infrastructure implemented in 2010 and sought a managed hosting solution from an external IT partner. With the new IT platform, W&O sees opportunities to better market its proposition. In addition, the platform offers the flexibility to optimize its business processes and services. W&O found this IT partner in Referit.

Collaboration

The collaboration between W&O and Referit aims to:

  • W&O with a managed hosting solution to completely unburden IT;
  • Making an initial modernization step by replacing existing hardware and software;
  • To comply with laws and regulations of financial regulators;  
  • Working toward a fully modernized and future-proof cloud landscape.
To continue to meet the high expectations of its customers, Wijs & van Oostveen felt the urgent need to modernize its IT landscape.

Secure IT system  

In 2021, W&O asked Referit for help in providing, developing and managing a future-proof and secure IT system.  

The first step was to move the IT infrastructure from partially on-premise at W&O and partially in a data center in Amsterdam, to one of Referit's Dutch data centers.

This included ensuring secure Internet access through the use of firewall, spam filter, web filters and VPN configuration. Access to the local office network in Amsterdam and home workstations was also provided. All workstations are linked to Intune. This allows Referit to manage the workstations over the Internet.

In the event of a disaster, a backup and restore solution ensures that W&O's servers are back up and running within an agreed upon timeframe. This minimizes the potential damage of duped customers or prevents them from suffering any damage at all.        

Business-critical applications

An important task of the IT system is to host the automation system. This automation system consists of three underlying on-premise and mission-critical applications (CRM, securities administration and the trading system). W&O is currently exploring replacement and innovative SaaS applications. Once these are found, the path is clear for W&O to move to a fully modernized cloud landscape. 

Managed hosting data center Referit

The new IT infrastructure uses a managed hosting solution in Referit's data center. The business applications are hosted on standard software, such as Windows Server 2019 and SQL Server 2019. This means legacy automation system applications can continue to do their critical work until W&O has replacement SaaS applications.  

DORA and measures taken

As of January 2025, all financial organizations must comply with the requirements of the Digital Operations Resilience Act (DORA). DORA is a European regulation with the goal that financial organizations will better manage their IT risks and thus become more resilient to cyber threats.

Under DORA, W&O and Referit have taken the following actions:

  • W&O's IT system is resilient to IT incidents and cyber attacks;
  • W&O and Referit have agreed on an exit strategy. This allows the contract to be terminated immediately;
  • W&O has a guarantee that all data resides in Referit's data center in the Netherlands;
  • Referit is ISO 27001 (information security) certified.

Benefits to S&O

The replacement of existing hardware and software and a number of architectural changes allow W&O to respond more quickly to developments in its market. This has led to more significant benefits:  

  • Business continuity is better assured;
  • Through the managed hosting solution, W&O is completely unburdened;
  • Security is modernized which minimizes data theft;
  • Data is processed according to GDPR legislation.
  • The solution is compliant with DORA requirements.

Want to know more? Contact director of W&O

Want to know more about how Referit, Wijs & Van Oostveen, is helping to modernize its IT environment? Director, Steven Sarphatie, is happy to tell you more about the cooperation with Referit and what the benefits are for his company and customers. You can reach Steven using the contact information below. He is aware of your contact.

Wijs & van Oostveen

Future Vision

With the realization of the first modernization effort, W&O is ready for the next goal: realizing a fully modernized cloud landscape.

Steven Sarphatie: "I have no worries since I know Referit has my company's IT security well taken care of."