Overview 

A leading finance organization in Australia needed to migrate its core systems from an aging data center to Microsoft Azure. Daily financial operations were supported by a crucial 500GB SQL database that could not afford extended outages. Thus, existing configurations had issues with expansion, security, and performance. 

Krish designed a modern cloud setup using Azure and implemented Zero Trust security that improved its security, ensured business continuity, and established a foundation for future workload expansion. 

Client Background

A well-known Australian financial services organization that delivers financial products and services to customers across the region, relies heavily on tech to support daily operations. The organization manages large volumes of sensitive financial data and operates under strict regulatory and compliance standards. 

Challenges

• Legacy Infrastructure Limiting Growth: The client was running critical finance applications on an ageing on-premises datacenter. They lacked scalability, causing performance issues and slowing support.
• High Security and Compliance Pressure: They struggled to meet security requirements, audit, and regulatory standards because of on-prem systems. 
• Lack of a Standard Cloud Foundation: There was no structured cloud landing zone to support governance, networking, and scalability for future workloads.  
• Lack of Centralized Application Access Security: Exposing applications to users and partners required strong protection against threats.  

Solutions

• CAF-Aligned Azure Landing Zone: Built a secure Azure foundation using a hub-and-spoke design for strong governance and clear network separation. 
• Protected External Access with WAF: Used Azure Application Gateway to protect applications, block common web threats, and protect customer-facing systems. 
• Reliable Migration of SQL Database: Migrated the 500GB SQL database using tested methods with reduced downtime. 
• Centralized Network Security and Threat Protection: Implemented multi-layer Zero Trust and Azure Firewall for attack defense.

Technology in Use

SQL Server 
Azure Firewall 
Defender for Cloud 
Azure Monitor 

Business Values

• Reliable Data Migration: Successfully migrated to a 500GB SQL database with optimized performance. 

• Measurable Performance Gains: Improved application response times by 45%. 

• Stronger Security Posture: Reduced risk through a Zero Trust security model. 

Future Scope

This Azure Zero Trust model protects critical financial apps while ensuring easy monitoring, smooth performance across hybrid environments, and better cloud-to-on-prem connectivity. The new setup also opens the door for the adoption of cloud-native apps, better analytics, and more secure infrastructure.