This year should begin a turnaround in information technology spending at banks, according to a new report from Celent titled “IT Spending in Banking: A North American Perspective.”

Economic, regulatory and competitive pressures have challenged the industry in the past few years, but “a more fundamental area has truly revolutionized the industry—technology,” wrote the report's author, Jacob Jegher.

Celent said data it collected shows that 2012 saw a substantial reduction in IT spending growth but that 2013 will be different story.

The report said North American IT spending growth is expected to be 4% higher in 2013, going from $54.7 billion in 2012 to $56.9 billion in 2013 to $61.9 billion in 2015.

The use of third-party services is helping that growth along in areas such as digital banking, cash and treasury management and payments, as well as in security, risk management and regulatory and compliance help, the Celent report said.

“Technology's radical implications in the financial services industry have grown exponentially,” Jegher wrote. “Although information technology has played a significant role for some time, today it is a major competitive requirement for financial institutions. This explains why North American banks are investing a sizable chunk of their revenues in IT.”