Financial institutions facing the technical risks of cloud migration now have empirical data regarding the stability of legacy card processing software in managed environments. ACI Worldwide (NASDAQ: ACIW) and Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) have announced the results of joint performance testing for BASE24-eps, a core component of ACI’s card acquiring and issuing solutions, deployed on Amazon Web Services (AWS). The testing aimed to determine if existing, widely used payment software could maintain high-volume reliability when transitioned from traditional hardware to cloud-based managed services.
BASE24-eps Sustains High-Volume Transaction Loads
The joint testing program, executed by Cognizant in a non-production environment, focused on the ability of BASE24-eps to handle extreme transaction spikes without service interruption. Under simulated point-of-sale conditions, the system sustained more than double its target transaction load for a continuous 30-minute period. Throughout the entire testing cycle, the environment processed more than 4.6 million transactions without a single failed transaction. This result is intended to address the common industry assumption that migrating card processing to the cloud necessitates a complete, multi-year rebuild of existing platforms.
To achieve these results, the technical architecture utilized Amazon EC2 and Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL, a managed database service. The deployment process was automated to reduce manual labor during software setup. For real-time oversight, the team instrumented observability to the OpenTelemetry standard and utilized Amazon CloudWatch to monitor system health, throughput, and transaction flow. While this test confirms the ability to deploy and sustain load using managed services, the companies noted that full production deployment would still require additional steps, including availability zone resilience, disaster recovery testing, and payment network certification.
Addressing Cloud Migration Risks for Banking Institutions
For banks, the strategic motivation for cloud adoption centers on scaling capacity to absorb volume spikes—such as those seen during holiday shopping or paydays—without the capital expenditure of permanent hardware. However, the transition often introduces perceived risks regarding performance and control. By testing BASE24-eps on AWS, ACI Worldwide and Cognizant are positioning the software as a viable option for institutions that want to leverage cloud agility without abandoning the card platforms they already rely on.
The testing specifically targets the "migration vs. rebuild" dilemma. Rather than forcing banks into a total platform overhaul, the results suggest that existing software can be integrated into managed AWS environments. This approach aims to provide the scalability and cost management benefits of the cloud while maintaining the rigorous performance standards required for real-time card processing. The companies are presenting this evidence to banks that require proven stability before committing to the complex process of moving mission-critical payment systems into the cloud.
Key Takeaways
- BASE24-eps processed over 4.6 million transactions during testing with zero failures.
- The system sustained more than double its target transaction load for 30 minutes under simulated load.
- The tested architecture utilized Amazon EC2, Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL, and Amazon CloudWatch.
FinanceInsyte's Take
In our view, this testing serves as a critical de-risking mechanism for mid-to-large tier banks hesitant to abandon proven legacy software for cloud-native alternatives. By demonstrating that BASE24-eps can handle more than twice its intended load on AWS, ACI and Cognizant are attacking the primary barrier to cloud adoption: the fear of performance degradation during peak volatility. This signals a shift toward a "hybrid-evolution" model, where institutions can modernize their infrastructure via managed services like Amazon RDS rather than undergoing the high-risk, high-cost process of a total system replacement. For capital markets and fintech observers, this validates the growing trend of wrapping established payment logic in modern, scalable cloud wrappers.
Questions & Answers
How does this testing impact the total cost of ownership for card processing?
By demonstrating that BASE24-eps can run on managed services like Amazon RDS for PostgreSQL, the testing suggests banks may be able to scale capacity via the cloud to meet peak demands without the need for permanent, expensive hardware investments.
What are the remaining requirements before this can move to a production environment?
The companies clarified that this test was a narrower validation of load and deployment. A full production rollout would still require security hardening, resilience testing across availability zones, disaster recovery protocols, and formal payment network certification.
Does this mean banks must replace their current software to use AWS?
No. The testing specifically addressed the ability to deploy BASE24-eps—software banks already use—onto managed AWS services, suggesting that institutions can modernize their infrastructure without a multi-year platform rebuild.
What specific technical tools were used to monitor the transaction flow?
The environment utilized the OpenTelemetry standard for observability and Amazon CloudWatch to allow operations teams to monitor system health, throughput, and transaction flow in real time.
Source: ACI Worldwide
