What started as a strategic move to modernise IT infrastructure has grown into a large-scale, highly automated cloud migration programme that Amazon Web Services (AWS) now presents globally as a best practice example for other organisations. At its peak, the programme reached migration speeds several times faster than typical industry benchmarks. In just over a year, hundreds of applications were moved to the cloud – a scale and pace rarely seen in banking.
A strategic shift to the cloud
Scale, speed, and impact
In terms of scale, the transformation is exceptional. The programme covers a third of Danske Bank’s IT infrastructure – amounting to around 1,200 applications. Thanks to a hyper automated “lift & shift” migration model developed specifically for this programme, applications can now be migrated in parallel and at speed.
In total, the scope of the programme includes more than 1,000 applications, around 18,000 servers, and approximately 60,000 OpenShift containers – a scale that positions it as a landmark transformation in the Nordic and broader European banking sector.
“Danske Bank's cloud migration represents a breakthrough in financial services transformation. The project achieved migration velocities 4–6x faster than industry benchmarks, with a peak velocity of 150 applications per month,” says Michael Wennerstrøm, Country Manager, Denmark and Iceland at Amazon Web Services.
This approach has significantly shortened migration timelines and reduced manual work, helping the bank move faster while maintaining stability. Beyond efficiency gains, the cloud foundation enables further innovation – from process automation to advanced analytics and artificial intelligence.
From internal programme to global best practice
The success of the programme has not gone unnoticed. AWS now presents the Danske Bank migration as a reference case for other organisations embarking on similar transformations. In practical terms, this means that the automation frameworks, migration patterns, and architectural decisions developed during the programme can be reused as a blueprint elsewhere.
“The project delivers exceptional outcomes across multiple dimensions: a 70% reduction in manual effort, and minimal dependency on application teams. This shows that large‑scale cloud transformation can be both efficient and sustainable when automation and collaboration are built in from the start,” says Adrian Phelan, Head of Public Cloud Services at Danske Bank.
While the model was designed for the financial sector, its principles are relevant far beyond banking – particularly for large enterprises operating in complex, regulated environments.
Lithuania as a key coordination hub in the transformation
A key reason for the programme’s success lies in the joint effort of teams across Danske Bank, working in close collaboration with Amazon Web Services. While expertise from across the organisation contributes to the transformation, coordination and a significant share of delivery are driven from the Vilnius office in Lithuania, where Danske Bank has built strong capabilities in IT infrastructure and programme management.
“The team based in Lithuania is central to delivering one of the largest transformations in the banking sector – in terms of both speed and quality. This transformation has given the team every opportunity to apply their open mindset, strong cross‑functional collaboration, and to create solutions that have no existing equivalents,” says Ieva Mizgeraitė Mažulė.
Cloud migration is not an end in itself. It is a foundation for the next phase of Danske Bank’s digital evolution – enabling faster innovation, more resilient systems, and better customer centric solutions.
