[By NBC-1TV H. J Yook]BAI and Infosys are now accepting nominations for their global awards program, the 2013 BAI - Finacle Global Banking Innovation Awards. Since the inaugural year of the awards in 2011, more than 175 organizations from 35 countries have submitted nominations. The awards program recognizes breakthrough innovation that positively impacts profitability, bank efficiency and customer experience for best-in-class financial institutions.

Nominations for the awards can be submitted by retail banks, solutions providers, industry analysts and media agencies, but only financial institutions that provide financial services to consumers are eligible to receive the awards.

Award categories for 2013 have been expanded to include awards for both Innovation in Internal Process Improvement and Innovation in Societal and Community Impact. Awards will also again be provided for Product and Service Innovation, Channel Innovation, Disruptive Innovation in Banking and the Most Innovative Bank of the Year.

Interested applicants can submit nominations online at www.baiglobalinnovations.com through May 3, 2013.

“The third year of this global awards program promises to be just as inspiring as the previous two,” says Debbie Bianucci, president and chief executive officer of BAI. “The worldwide recognition and year-over-year growth of this awards program is a measure of the importance that banks around the world place on not only being innovative, but also in continually improving the customer experience.”

“The awards underscore what we do at Infosys every day -- fostering new thinking that drives the future of banking,” said Haragopal Mangipudi, Global Head, Finacle™, Infosys. “Innovation is the key to success for today's financial institutions, and the BAI-Finacle Global Innovation Awards honor these achievements and recognize leading products, customer experiences and operational models.”