• Projected investment for the first 24 months of the project is approximately R$40 million, marking a complete overhaul of the client’s critical infrastructure
• New operation delivers high availability for millions of daily transactions across more than 15 countries
• Project accelerates regulatory compliance and strengthens the partnership between heimr and IBM

São Paulo, June 2025 – A leading fintech headquartered in London, with a strong presence in over 15 European Union countries, recently completed one of the most ambitious technological infrastructure transformation projects in the sector. Led by heimr, the initiative involved a complete migration of operations to the IBM Cloud, focusing on high availability, scalability, and regulatory compliance. The new environment was designed to support millions of daily transactions and sustain the company’s accelerated growth in the coming years.

The overhaul replaced a centralized architecture with a multiregional model distributed across three countries, with data centers in Frankfurt, Amsterdam, and London. The project, executed in phases, included establishing a disaster recovery environment, transferring production systems, and consolidating a simultaneous operational structure across multiple regions.

According to the client’s IT Director, the project was critical to ensuring the infrastructure could keep pace with the company’s expansion. “We needed a model capable of supporting business growth with continuous availability and full compliance with the regulatory requirements of the countries where we operate,” the executive stated.

With an estimated investment of R$40 million over the first 24 months, the project encompasses the complete structuring of the new multiregional environment, heimr’s specialized services, and the adoption of IBM Cloud as the primary platform for supporting critical systems.

Multiregional Architecture

Before the overhaul, the client’s critical infrastructure was concentrated in a single physical data center in Iceland. Beyond connectivity limitations and its distance from Europe’s main financial hubs, the company faced operational and regulatory challenges due to a lack of redundancy and the technical complexity of the environment. The infrastructure relied on technologies such as IBM i Series, IBM AIX, and VMware within the same ecosystem, which hindered interventions and made previous migration attempts unfeasible. Additionally, the data center’s proximity to one of Iceland’s most active volcanoes heightened the risks of a centralized infrastructure and underscored the project’s criticality.

The implementation of the new architecture was carried out in three phases, starting in February 2024. In the first phase, completed in July, heimr established a Disaster Recovery environment on IBM Cloud, based in Frankfurt. This provided the client with an alternative instance capable of taking over operations in case of a failure at the original data center. The second phase, finalized in January 2025, migrated all production systems to the cloud, prioritizing performance and resilience. The final phase, completed in May, established a multiregional high-availability model with multiple data centers operating simultaneously, eliminating the traditional concept of contingency and elevating operational continuity.

“The client needed a solution that combined rapid implementation with a high level of technical expertise, given the infrastructure’s complexity and the regulatory requirements involved. We structured a phased project that ensured business continuity from the start without compromising operations at any point,” said heimr’s CEO, Wagner Hiendlmayer.

The restructured infrastructure now supports not only client-facing systems, such as payment processing, card issuance, corporate accounts, and reservation management, but also all internal organizational functions. The current operation serves approximately 1,000 employees and supports over 300,000 commercial establishments, ensuring millions of daily transactions with speed, stability, and security.

With the new model, the client now meets the metrics required by certifications like PCI DSS and regulations such as DORA, while also complying with guidelines from entities like EBA, EIOPA, ESMA, and Íslandsbanki. The company has also gained greater efficiency in audits and compliance processes, achieving predictability and a robust structure to operate securely in various regulated markets.

“IBM Cloud was designed to offer native security, control, and compliance for financial institutions. This structure enables companies to advance their modernization journey with confidence, even when operating with sensitive workloads under stringent regulations,” said Thiago Videira, Head of IBM Public Cloud Latin America.

Technical Execution Led by heimr

Responsible for the project’s technical execution, heimr structured the migration with a focus on service continuity and respect for the client’s unique environment. To achieve this, they adopted a phased approach with constant workload monitoring and validation at each transition stage, ensuring operations were never disrupted.

According to the client’s executive, the partnership with heimr was pivotal to the project’s success. “Heimr’s expertise with critical environments was essential to ensuring the migration occurred without impacting our services. The joint efforts of the teams enabled quick decisions, efficient coordination, and a level of integration that exceeded our expectations,” explained the IT Director.

Heimr deployed a bilingual, specialized team operating 24/7 in a follow-the-sun model, leveraging its extensive experience in critical environments and tailor-made solutions. Its work was supported by international security certifications, such as ISO 27001 and NIST, and its status as an IBM Platinum Partner, which accelerated integration with the platform and ensured the solution’s technical compliance.

“Our approach was based on a strategic partnership model, with 24/7 support across multiple time zones and bilingual assistance. This structure, combined with our deep expertise in IBM technologies and our security certifications, was decisive in helping the client achieve a new level of resilience and operational availability,” added Hiendlmayer.

With the new infrastructure operational, heimr and the client are already exploring further collaboration on additional innovation fronts. Initiatives under consideration include applying FinOps for operational efficiency, adopting Quantum Safe technologies for cryptographic protection in the quantum computing era, and developing AI and automation solutions for strategic data and process management.

About heimr

With a presence in Brazil and Europe, heimr has offices in London and São Paulo, operating globally as a boutique technology firm specializing in tailored solutions for business continuity. The company provides strategic services in infrastructure, data, security, automation, and governance, focusing on high performance, availability, and compliance with international standards. In addition to a comprehensive portfolio of cutting-edge solutions, heimr boasts a highly specialized team and strategic partnerships with IBM, Microsoft, SAP, RedHat, and other global companies, delivering customized projects for critical corporate environments, helping businesses overcome technological challenges with efficiency and security.