Kiwibank has announced it is likely to spend more than NZ$100 million over the next four years changing from the Ultracs-based system it adopted when it launched in 2002 to a SAP-based core banking system.Kiwibank disclosed earlier this month it had gone through a year-long hunt for a new core banking system and had narrowed the field down to two suppliers, both of whom ran core systems for big banks in Australasia. Computing industry sources indicated last week that SAP had won the deal. Oracle was thought to be the losing bidder.Kiwibank chief executive, Paul Brock, said the bank had decided to replace its core banking system as it looked to broaden its type of products and number of products per customer. Kiwibank initially considered the shift in 2009 but decided against it in early 2010. Brock said he revisited the issue after becoming CEO in September 2010.Kiwibank originally chose Ultracs from the Melbourne-based Ultradata when launching in 2002 as a simple savings and mortgage type bank. Brock said Kiwibank had now grown to twice the size it had originally thought it would be. "We're now a much broader bank, including smaller business banking," he said. Kiwibank now has 10.7 per cent of the market for main bank customers and has switched from a strategy of growing customer numbers to growing the number of products per customer, including credit cards, insurance, funds management and small business banking. Brock said more than half of the spending would be on local technology companies and work implementing SAP in a phased way over four years.SAP has over 100 staff in Auckland and Wellington, while Kiwibank was Ultracs' only customer in New Zealand. Commonwealth Bank of Australia's ASB also uses SAP in New Zealand and National Australia Bank's BNZ is considering replacing its core banking system.