Alba Leasing, one of Italy’s top leasing companies, has chosen Accenture (NYSE:ACN) to support its digital transformation program under a new agreement the companies have signed.

The agreement expands the scope of services Accenture has been providing under a contract the two companies signed in 2011 and extends it for four-and-a-half more years, through the end of 2019. Accenture will provide technology consulting services in addition to its current provision of application management and infrastructure services. The new contract supports Alba Leasing’s digital transformation program, which the company has launched to respond to market changes and develop new and enhanced offerings and customer services.

The program is central to the achievement of Alba Leasing’s business plan for the period 2014-2018, as it will help boost productivity, sales and operating efficiency and improve risk management.

Accenture’s support will enable Alba Leasing to complete its transformation program, enhancing the leasing process and transforming its IT systems. New innovations, such as digital-signature capabilities, will be introduced to achieve greater efficiency and enhance the customer experience, and analytic capabilities will be improved to better support risk-management decisions.

“Our ambition is to become the leading digital leasing company in Italy and provide the best possible customer experience,” said Stefano Corti, COO of Alba Leasing. “We trust Accenture in its capacity to help us achieve this, given the business value the company has helped us create since 2011. We look forward to continuing to team with Accenture, leveraging its capabilities as an IT services provider and its global digital transformation experience to support one of Alba’s most strategic programs.”

Fausto Ricchiardi, a managing director in Accenture’s Financial Services operating group, said, “Digital transformation programs enable simpler, more convenient and faster leasing processes, all of which contribute to enhancing the customer experience while improving risk management and optimizing operational costs. This program will give Alba Leasing a major competitive advantage, and we are excited to be able to continue our relationship for the next several years.”

Accenture serves the global leasing industry through Accenture Credit Services, a full-service consulting, technology and outsourcing capability that supports institutions in the financial sector. The services are designed to help clients significantly improve the customer experience while enhancing operational efficiency, service quality and profitability. Accenture Credit Services serves more than 80 major lending institutions worldwide.

In 2014, Alba Leasing saw new business volumes exceed €1 billion (up 23.48% on the previous year) and strong growth in gross income (€78.26 million, up 19.91% on 2013), continuing the growth trend in the market. Today, Alba Leasing is the third-largest leasing company in Italy.

About Accenture

Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, with more than 336,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world’s most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. The company generated net revenues of US$30.0 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2014. Its home page is www.accenture.com.

About Alba Leasing

Alba Leasing is a specialist provider of lease financing, owned by Banca Popolare dell’Emilia Romagna S.c. (33.50%), Banco Popolare S.c. (30.15%), Banca Popolare di Sondrio S.c.p.a. (19.26%), Banca Popolare di Milano S.c. (9.04%) and Credito Valtellinese S.c. (8.05%). Alba Leasing offers a wide range of products – mostly for capital goods and real estate financing – through a distribution network of approximately 5,700 branches, including almost 3,600 member banks and over 2,100 partner banks.