Bangalore, March 31: In a rare joint appearance, Wipro chairman Azim Premji and Infosys chief mentor N. R. Narayana Murthy today announced a collaborative venture to develop the core banking solution for Vijay Bank at an estimated cost of Rs 90 crore.

As a prime integrator, Wipro will work on end-to-end implementation and integration of Infosys’ Finacle banking solution, besides providing telebanking and anti-money laundering solutions.

This is the third major order bagged by the two software majors from a nationalised bank. Earlier, they have executed similar projects for Union Bank of India and Oriental Bank of Commerce.

While addressing a news conference, Premji said: “This is a momentous occasion for Vijaya Bank, Wipro and Infosys. With the launch of the state-of-the-art core banking solution, Vijaya Bank has effectively leveraged information technology to make smart-banking a reality.”

Talking about similar joint ventures with Infosys, Premji said, “We are keen to work with Infosys on such projects. We compete with them in the morning and partner them in the afternoon.”

Wipro has no intentions of developing such a product on its own, he added.

“We are very fierce competitors and do it in a humble way. We do it in an ethical way and we are proud of it,” Narayana Murthy said, adding that he used Wipro’s computer and lighting products at his office.