Case Study:
Securing a Financial Institution’s Cloud Migration

Overview

A global financial institution required a secure, compliant, and scalable cloud solution for its actuarial financial reserve process. The existing system was a shadow IT operation, running SAS models on Mac computers and on-prem applications stored in office closets. This setup posed significant security vulnerabilities, regulatory non-compliance risks, and operational inefficiencies, making an overhaul essential.

The objective was to migrate the entire data processing pipeline to AWS while ensuring adherence to strict regulatory, security, and governance requirements.

Challenges

Explore a financial institution's journey to cloud migration, enhancing efficiency and security.

Compliance & Governance Risks

• Shadow IT & Regulatory Exposure – The existing non-compliant infrastructure lacked centralized governance and security controls, increasing regulatory risk.

• Strict Compliance Requirements – The solution needed to meet ISO 27001, GDPR, SOC 2, IFRS 17, and internal security frameworks.

• Security & Enterprise Cloud Integration

• Complex Security Approvals – The institution followed a CCoE-managed cloud vending model, requiring approvals across security, risk, legal, and compliance teams.
  

• Zero Trust & Network Security – Integration into a highly secured AWS Transit Gateway network required advanced security controls.

• Enterprise Identity & Access Management – Implementing Okta authentication, AWS IAM hardening, and Private Link endpoints to enforce least privilege.

• Data Migration & Resilience

• On-Prem to Cloud Transition – Moving financial models from on-prem FSx for Windows & NetApp ONTAP storage to AWS while ensuring data integrity, security, and minimal downtime.

  
  

• Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity – The institution required an on-demand DR strategy to ensure auditability and resilience.

Solution Overview

Key Technologies & Architecture

Compute & Storage

• Amazon SageMaker (used as general-purpose instances, not for ML)

• Amazon EC2 for custom financial models (used as a cockpit for all actuarial interactions)

• Amazon FSx for Windows & FSx ONTAP for storage

• Amazon S3 for storage and disaster recovery (DR) replication

Security & Compliance

• Network Security: VPC, NACLs, Security Groups

• Zero Trust Authentication: Okta for identity & access management

• End-to-End Encryption: Ensured for all data in transit and at rest

• Private Endpoints: Eliminated public network exposure for critical services

• Security Tooling: Veracode & Prisma scans for vulnerability management

• Cloud Governance: Enforced strict alignment with ISO 27001, SOC 2, GDPR, and internal policies
  

Networking & Enterprise Integration

• Enterprise Hub-and-Spoke Transit Network: Required advanced network security expertise

• Hybrid Cloud Connectivity: Secure and governed data transfer from on-prem to AWS

• API Security & Access Controls: Enforced private VPC endpoints and managed access

  
  

  Disaster Recovery (DR) & Resilience
  

• Automated DR Deployment: Implemented using Terraform

• Data Replication & Backup Strategies: Ensured redundancy and failover capabilities

• Auditable, Compliant Architecture: Meeting stringent financial data integrity requirements

The solution was architected and implemented in a CCoE-managed AWS environment, leveraging a vended landing zone aligned with TOGAF principles. The cloud architecture ensured strong governance, regulatory compliance, and security while providing a scalable and resilient environment for financial calculations.

Service Onboarding & Approval Process

PoC to Production Transition

• Conducted proof-of-concept (PoC) phases to validate security, compliance, and operational impact.

• Engaged with security, legal, risk, and compliance teams to ensure regulatory alignment.

• Hardened cloud configurations before final production approval.

Enterprise Cloud Governance

Worked within a CCoE-managed cloud vending machine model for secure service provisioning.

• Ensured cloud architecture approvals aligned with legal, ITSM, risk, and security frameworks.

• Managed complex onboarding of previously unavailable AWS services through governance processes.

My Role & Contributions

Cloud Strategy & Governance
Designed a secure AWS-vended landing zone aligned with TOGAF architecture principles.
Integrated the solution into the CCoE-managed cloud vending machine model, ensuring compliance.
Led security and governance approvals across architecture, security, legal, risk, ITSM, and compliance teams.

Security & Compliance
Regulatory Alignment: Ensured full compliance with ISO 27001, GDPR, SOC 2, IFRS 17, and internal security policies.

Enterprise-Grade Security Measures:
IAM Hardening: Enforced least privilege using Okta for authentication and AWS KMS for encryption.
Network Security Controls: Deployed VPCs, NACLs, Security Groups, PrivateLink, and AWS Transit Gateway.
DevSecOps & Compliance Scanning: Integrated Veracode, Prisma Scans, and AWS-native security tools.

Data Migration & Storage Modernization
Migrated financial models from on-prem FSx & NetApp ONTAP to AWS FSx and S3 with full encryption and versioning.
Implemented secure, auditable data storage & processing workflows in AWS.

Enterprise Networking & Cloud Integration
Integrated into the hub-and-spoke AWS Transit Gateway network with private networking.
Implemented PrivateLink & VPC endpoints to prevent public data exposure.

DevSecOps & Automation
Established private cloud service endpoints to enforce zero-trust security.
Designed CI/CD pipelines with policy-driven deployments using GitHub Enterprise.

Disaster Recovery & Resilience
Designed an on-demand DR solution using Terraform, ensuring rapid recovery.
Implemented automated S3 replication & backup to meet compliance needs.

As the Solution Architect and Platform Manager, I led the end-to-end cloud transformation, including:

Outcome & Impact

• Regulatory Compliance Achieved: Fully aligned with ISO 27001, GDPR, IFRS 17, and internal security policies.

• Secure & Auditable Cloud Migration: Ensured strong governance, encryption, and private connectivity.

• Operational Efficiency Gains: Automated cloud deployments cut provisioning time from weeks to hours.

• Enterprise-Grade Security: Implemented a zero-trust architecture with deep network security controls.

• Disaster Recovery Readiness: Delivered a comprehensive, auditable DR strategy for regulatory compliance.

Why Work With Me?

✔ Proven Industry Experience – Over 25 years in cloud strategy, security, and governance.
✔ Security-First Mindset – Solutions designed for compliance, risk management, and resilience.
✔ Business-Driven Innovation – Aligning cloud technology with strategic financial objectives.
✔ Hands-On Expertise – I don’t just consult—I architect, implement, and optimize cloud environments.

With over 25 years in IT and a decade specializing in cloud computing, I bring deep expertise in designing, securing, and optimizing cloud solutions for regulated industries. My work spans across multi-cloud environments, automation, and compliance-driven architectures to empower organizations with resilient and scalable cloud infrastructures.