Achieved near-zero downtime for critical EKYC services through Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE)
Shifted infrastructure from rigid Capex to flexible Opex with Google Cloud
Protected automated digital onboarding workflows using Cloud Armor
Eliminated manual morning system checks with proactive Cloud Monitoring
Secured core database infrastructure metrics utilizing Cloud SQL
Bank Rakyat leverages Google Cloud to build a high-availability EKYC solution, achieving near-zero downtime.
Bank Rakyat leverages Google Cloud to build a high-availability EKYC solution, achieving near-zero downtime.
Overcoming manual, paper-driven bottlenecks in a 72-year-old legacy financial institution
Bank Rakyat, established in 1954, is one of the largest Islamic cooperative banks in Malaysia. As consumer behavior shifted—with Gen Y and Gen Z viewing financial institutions as digital applications rather than physical branches—the bank initiated an aggressive digital transformation strategy in late 2020 to remain competitive.
A primary challenge was the bank’s legacy customer onboarding, which relied on a manual, paper-driven workflow that caused slow turnaround times and hindered speed-to-market. To optimize operations and elevate the customer journey, Bank Rakyat decided to build a proprietary, automated Electronic Know Your Customer (EKYC), and Credit Scoring and Decisioning subsystem for retail and business users.
To own its digital core while safely upskilling its team, the bank deployed Phase 1 on-premises to protect the initial project timeline. Simultaneously, they evaluated cloud vendors for a permanent, scalable foundation. Bank Rakyat moved to Google Cloud, determining that its infrastructure provided superior security, availability, and reliability.
Digital banking lets Gen Y and Z view the bank as a seamless app. To bring this digital future to life, we proudly chose Google Cloud—it stood out from competitors, offering the gold standard in reliability, security, and availability.
Adi Azmir Abdul Ghani
Head of Digital, Bank Rakyat
Transitioning to a high-availability cloud architecture with Cloud Mile
Migrating to Phase 2 required a highly resilient architecture. Bank Rakyat built its high-availability environment on Google Cloud, deploying Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) for container orchestration and Cloud SQL for database management. Security is enforced at every layer using Cloud Armor for perimeter defense, Cloud KMS for encryption keys, and Identity and Access Management (IAM) for access controls. Traffic is managed through Cloud Load Balancing, while Cloud Monitoring and Cloud Logging provide deep observability.
To navigate this transformation, Cloud Mile was selected as the implementation partner. Cloud Mile scored 92% in a rigorous procurement evaluation, balancing strong technical capability with cost-efficiency. It then conducted an intensive 6-to-12-month enablement program for the team, hosting technical workshops on cloud architecture, risk mitigation, and compliance.
Cloud Mile’s regional expertise helped Bank Rakyat navigate strict internal hurdles and meet Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) regulatory mandates by co-authoring comprehensive cloud exit strategies. Today, Cloud Mile provides ongoing 24x7 managed services to ensure continuous system optimization.
With Cloud Mile, the knowledge transfer was an educational journey that strengthened our foundations and built complete confidence. It successfully addressed all risk and compliance queries, helping us design a robust architecture.
Adi Azmir Abdul Ghani
Head of Digital, Bank Rakyat
Driving zero-downtime performance and financial agility through Opex scaling
The migration to Google Cloud fundamentally transformed Bank Rakyat’s financial agility and operational efficiency. Shifting from an on-premises model completely eliminated the burdens of traditional five-year hardware capacity planning. Instead of making massive upfront capital investments (Capex) in underutilized hardware, the bank adopted a flexible, pay-per-use operational expenditure (Opex) model that scales alongside real-time consumer usage.
Operationally, the cloud environment drastically increased productivity. By leveraging automated alerts from Cloud Monitoring, the IT infrastructure team is instantly notified through email when resource capacity reaches 80%. This proactive visibility eliminated tedious manual system checks every morning, freeing technical resources to focus entirely on strategic front-facing digital applications.
Crucially, the new EKYC and Credit Scoring pipeline has delivered near-zero downtime since going live. This stable digital framework has successfully automated the customer onboarding journey, giving the bank the agility to capture digital-first consumers. As a result, leadership has mandated that all future digital initiatives default to cloud infrastructure.
Transitioning to an opex model with Google Cloud means we only pay for what we use instead of over-investing in five-year capex planning. Our team now enjoys near-zero downtime and zero manual maintenance overhead.
Adi Azmir Abdul Ghani
Head of Digital, Bank Rakyat
Bank Rakyat is one of Malaysia’s largest Islamic cooperative banks, established in 1954. It offers a comprehensive range of Shariah-compliant financial products and services for individuals and businesses.
Industries: Financial Services, Insurance
Location: Malaysia
Products: Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE), Cloud SQL, Cloud Armor, Cloud KMS, Identity and Access Management (IAM), Cloud Load Balancing, Cloud Monitoring, Cloud Logging
About Google Cloud partner – Cloud Mile
Cloud Mile is a leading cloud and AI managed service provider. As a Google Cloud partner across Malaysia and Singapore, they specialize in digital transformation, cloud migrations, and 24x7 managed services.
