Operating system OpenFin has changed its name to Here, and launched an enterprise browser as the business evolves into providing turnkey solutions to increase productivity from desktop applications.

Adam Toms, chief operating officer at Here, told Markets Media that when the company launched in 2010, initially in capital markets, it led with OpenFin OS, an operating system enabling seamless communication and workflow between apps on a desktop, that required building by developers.

The company then introduced Workspace, the visual interface of OpenFin OS, which helped unify and simplify the end user experience across both internal and third-party apps to improve productivity and reduce operational risk, which required less development and so was easier to deploy.

He described the Here Enterprise Browser as a natural evolution as a turnkey solution.

“We are now attacking the app that everybody has on their desk, the internet browser, which needs to be much better,” Toms added. “This is a way to make users more productive for the app that is the most used on their desktop. It really is a game changer.”

Traditional web browsers were built as a consumer tool, but have become used for business. Toms said there has been innovation in the performance and security of browsers but the user experience still involves a “toggle tax.” Users have to copy and paste into many different tabs and rekey information, which makes them unproductive. Here is described as an enterprise browser built purposely for productivity and work.

Mazy Dar, chief executive and co-founder of Here, said in a statement: “In today’s market environment, companies can no longer afford to operate with the inefficient paradigm of browsers that were designed to surf the public internet.”

Here estimated that, on average, users toggle up to 1,200 times a day, losing about four hours per week in productivity and using up to two hours a day searching for information in different apps.

The deep search capability is very different to a consumer internet browser as Here allows users to search inside all the apps and data sources that they have been given permission to access

Super Tabs make search more efficient by binding together a number of tabs or layouts into one browser window, and they all dynamically update and communicate with one another, which removes the need for toggling.

A dedicated notification center means alerts can be immediately actioned, again, without needing to toggle into an app.

Users can be given specific permissions for a super tab, such as for client onboarding or reconciliations, and can immediately begin work in a pre-configured way, which Toms said reduces time to train employees and provides a better overall experience.

“Here has a set of administrative controls for entitlements, permissions, additional security layers and data loss prevention,” Toms added. “It comes with all the benefits of app interoperability and FDC3.”

FDC3 provides universal connectivity and standards for all fintech apps.

Here has been tested with big banks and is already live with one global bank according to Toms.

“The time savings are unbelievable,” he added. “In know-your-customer (KYC)/anti-money laundering (AML) areas of major banks, for example, we have seen a 40% improvement in workflow efficiency.”

The company already provides technology to 90% of global financial institutions but Toms argued that the enterprise browser provides further growth potential as a product that can scale across the sector. For example, asset managers may have fewer technology resources and be more reliant on products from vendors, so Here can provide a lot of value.

“We think this is a very significant area of growth for the firm,” Toms added.

Matt Harris, partner at Bain Capital Ventures, said in a statement that Here is is uniquely positioned to win in the enterprise browser space with its established track record in financial services. He said: “Since leading its Series A, we’ve been impressed by the company’s success in collaborating with the largest banks to meet their needs for productivity, security and compliance.”

Name change

Toms said the company changed its name to Here, as the name is a better representation of what it does today. When the firm launched, Here was solely focussed on capital markets, but it has since expanded into other sectors.

Here said in a blog: “What we realized along the way is that our product is more “Tech” than “Fin” and, as a matter of fact, there isn’t a single line of finance-specific code anywhere in our software.”

The blog continued that the evolution from “Fin” to “Enterprise” was reinforced about two years ago when the firm began working in the government sector in partnership with In-Q-Tel (IQT), the not-for-profit, strategic investor that supports the missions of the U.S. Intelligence Community, and also with contact centers, where productivity is essential.

“It’s now time to fully embrace the evolution of our company which was born from finance, but is no longer just for finance,” said the blog.

OpenFin will remain the name and brand of the container and Workspace software development products.