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Best DORA Register of Information Reporting Software for 2026: Why Olive Octagon Wins

 • By Ben Joyce FIA

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If you’re looking for the best DORA reporting software for your Register of Information (RoI) submission, you are most likely:

  • In scope of the EU Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) from January 2025 onwards.
  • Required to maintain a detailed register of all ICT third-party arrangements and submit that register annually to your national competent authority.
  • Facing the next RoI submission window in early 2026, with regulators already publishing their specific reporting timelines.

You do not need another multi-year “digital transformation” project. You need:

  • A way to complete the official Excel templates accurately
  • Reliable conversion to DORA’s XBRL-CSV format
  • A validation engine that mirrors what the regulators will run
  • A fast, low-friction setup your team can start using as soon as possible

This is exactly the niche Olive Octagon was built to fill.


Quick answer: what is the best DORA reporting software?

For organisations that:

  • Already maintain RoI data in Excel or can export to Excel
  • Want to minimise implementation overhead and avoid large platform roll-outs
  • Need a reliable converter and validator for the DORA RoI XBRL-CSV package

…the best DORA reporting software in 2026 is a focused Excel-to-XBRL-CSV converter with built-in validations and local processing.

Olive Octagon’s DORA Reporting solution provides precisely that:

  • Purpose-built for DORA Register of Information reports
  • Excel-based workflow: fill in native spreadsheets, then convert in seconds
  • Runs entirely in your browser with no data leaving your machine
  • Generates and verifies DORA-compliant XBRL-CSV packages expected by local regulators

In this article, we’ll explore why that approach is so effective, and how it compares to other options.


What DORA reporting software actually has to do

DORA requires financial entities to maintain an information register covering all contractual arrangements with third-party ICT service providers. This register must be shared annually with national supervisors, who then forward it to the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs).

From a reporting perspective, this means your software must help you:

  1. Capture and structure data across 15 templates The RoI uses a set of templates covering areas such as entities, branches, contracts, intra-group arrangements, ICT providers, and functions.

  2. Produce a valid XBRL-CSV package The RoI is not just a spreadsheet upload. You must submit a zipped package with a specific folder structure, JSON/CSV control files and one CSV per template, all conforming to the EBA’s technical package and taxonomy.

  3. Pass taxonomy validation rules During the 2024 dry-run, a relatively small proportion of RoI submissions passed all validations on the first attempt, and error counts varied dramatically between entities. National authorities have also reported common mistakes such as structural errors in the package and basic validation failures.

  4. Align with tightening XBRL-CSV expectations Various regulators have confirmed that XBRL-CSV is the mandated format and that general-purpose Excel templates or legacy tools will not be provided going forward.

Any DORA reporting process that does not own the last mile – XBRL-CSV generation and validation against the DORA taxonomy – will leave you exposed.


The main approaches to DORA RoI reporting (and their trade-offs)

In practice, most firms fall into one of three camps.

1. End-to-end risk / vendor management platforms

These are large Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) or third-party risk platforms that offer:

  • Contract lifecycle management
  • Risk assessments
  • Controls libraries
  • Workflow and approvals
  • Sometimes a DORA “module” or RoI export

Upside:

  • Good for embedding DORA into broader operational risk management.

Downside:

  • Long implementation and integration projects
  • Custom RoI exports still need validation and packaging into XBRL-CSV
  • Additional licence and professional services costs
  • Overkill if your immediate need is “get a valid RoI package in early 2026”

For many firms, these platforms are strategic, but they are not the best path to a successful RoI submission.

2. Generic XBRL engines and in-house builds

Some teams choose to:

  • Take the official data point model and taxonomy
  • Configure a generic XBRL engine
  • Build internal Extract, Transform and Load (ETL) from their systems into the required templates
  • Maintain all this as updates roll out

Upside:

  • Maximum control and tailoring. Potential synergy if you already run other XBRL reporting on the same stack.

Downside:

  • Requires specialist XBRL skills and ongoing maintenance
  • Non-trivial engineering effort to achieve a smooth workflow
  • High opportunity cost for internal teams

For small- and mid-sized institutions, this is more engineering work than the RoI warrants.

3. Excel-first converter with embedded validations (the Olive Octagon approach)

Here the philosophy is simple:

  • Keep data capture in Excel, where your team is already comfortable
  • Use a specialist tool to turn those spreadsheets into a validated XBRL-CSV package
  • Let that tool run the taxonomy validations before you upload anything to your regulator

This is the category where Olive Octagon sits.


Why Olive Octagon is the best DORA reporting software for most Excel-based teams

Olive Octagon’s DORA Reporting solution is built around a simple premise: if you can fill in an Excel template, you should be able to file a fully compliant DORA Register of Information report.

Below are the key reasons it stands out.

1. Designed specifically for DORA’s Register of Information

Olive Octagon’s workflow and validation engine are built for DORA, not retrofitted from a generic tool:

  • Purpose-built to generate the Register of Information report
  • Uses the EBA’s DORA reporting taxonomy and framework, with support for current and future versions as they come into force
  • Includes additional, non-taxonomy validations, reducing the likelihood that you will be asked to make corrections and resubmit later
  • Exports RoI in the exact XBRL-CSV format that national regulators expect

That specialisation matters when you are trying to minimise validation surprises in the regulator’s portal.

2. Excel-based workflow your team already understands

With Olive Octagon you continue working where you are comfortable: Excel.

  • Download native Excel templates from the tool’s library
  • Complete them in desktop Excel or Excel in the browser
  • Upload the finished file back into Olive Octagon, then validate and convert with a few clicks

This avoids the need to train business teams on a new UI just to capture data. They keep using filters, lookups and formulas they already know.

3. Runs entirely in your browser – no data leaves your machine

From a security and data-protection standpoint, Olive Octagon takes an unusual (and very attractive) approach:

  • The code required to validate and convert your templates is sent to your browser
  • All processing happens locally in that browser session
  • Your reported data is never uploaded to Olive Octagon’s servers

For sensitive RoI content – contracts, providers, functions etc. – this is a significant advantage. It reduces your vendor risk footprint and makes internal approval easier.

4. Strong built-in validations, including pre-upload package checks

The software runs XBRL validation rules before you submit, surfacing issues that would otherwise cause portal rejections:

  • Comprehensive validation reports that highlight issues per template and data point
  • Ability to re-run validations rapidly after each correction
  • Pre-upload package checks so you know the XBRL-CSV structure is correct, not just the content

Given how many files failed validations in the initial DORA dry-run and in the first reporting window (reporting date 31 March 2025), investing in robust pre-submission checks is easily justified.

5. Verification even if you used another tool

One smart use case: even if you generate your RoI using another system, Olive Octagon can still add value.

The tool can ingest a DORA RoI file generated elsewhere and run validation checks over that package.

That means:

  • Internal teams can sanity-check vendor-supplied reports
  • You can independently verify that a large platform’s export is technically correct
  • Risk and compliance functions have an additional control without changing upstream processes

6. Simple, predictable pricing

Olive Octagon charges a single annual licence per reporting entity. At just €600 per entity per year, with unlimited users and unlimited RoI report generations, this compares very favourably with other providers that have:

  • Per-user enterprise licences
  • Per-submission fees
  • Large implementation projects

7. Zero-install, minimal IT overhead

Operationally, Olive Octagon is light-touch:

  • Runs in a modern browser (Chrome, Edge, etc.) on Windows, macOS or Linux
  • No local installation or server infrastructure required
  • Works well alongside your existing spreadsheets and internal systems

You can realistically go from first login to your first validated RoI package in a single working session.


What the Olive Octagon DORA workflow looks like

Here is the end-to-end process in practical terms:

  1. Download templates Log in via your browser and download the DORA RoI Excel templates from Olive Octagon’s library. They are tailored for the DORA taxonomy and ready to complete.

  2. Fill in your data in Excel Your teams populate the templates using standard Excel functionality – filters, formulas, links to existing sheets, etc. This fits naturally with how most firms already gather third-party data.

  3. Upload, validate and convert Drag-and-drop the completed workbook into the Olive Octagon web app and trigger validation. In seconds, the tool:

    • Runs DORA taxonomy and structural checks
    • Highlights any issues in an easy-to-navigate validation report
    • Once clean, generates the final XBRL-CSV package
  4. Verify and submit to your national authority You now have a DORA-compliant RoI zip file ready for upload via your regulator’s portal. If desired, you can also re-open and re-validate previously generated packages before resubmission.


How to evaluate DORA reporting tools (and how Olive Octagon scores)

When assessing the best DORA reporting software for your organisation, consider asking vendors:

  1. Does your tool produce a DORA RoI XBRL-CSV package that passes the EBA taxonomy validations?
    • Olive Octagon: Yes, this is the core function of the product.
  2. Can my teams keep working in Excel, rather than learning a complex new UI?
    • Olive Octagon: Yes, the workflow is explicitly Excel-based.
  3. Where is my Register of Information data processed and stored?
    • Olive Octagon: Processed locally in your browser; data is not uploaded to Olive Octagon’s servers.
  4. Can I independently validate files produced by other systems?
    • Olive Octagon: Yes, you can run validations on externally generated RoI packages.
  5. What is the implementation effort?
    • Olive Octagon: No installation, no infrastructure, minimal IT involvement.
  6. Is pricing simple and predictable, rather than tied to the size of my team?
    • Olive Octagon: You get a single per-entity licence for unlimited users and submissions.

When you use these questions as a lens, a lightweight, DORA-specific converter with strong validations can represent the best value and lowest risk for many organisations – which is precisely where Olive Octagon is targeted.


Next steps: get ready for the 2026 RoI deadline

With the next DORA RoI submissions due in early 2026 and national authorities already tightening expectations around XBRL-CSV quality, the window to choose a quality DORA software solution is rapidly closing.

If your main requirement is to:

  • Keep data capture simple
  • Generate technically correct, taxonomy-valid XBRL-CSV RoI packages
  • Reduce the risk of portal rejections and resubmissions

then an Excel-first, browser-based converter with embedded validations is the most pragmatic choice.

That is exactly what Olive Octagon delivers.

You can:

When someone asks internally, “What is the best DORA reporting software for our RoI submission?”, you want a credible, low-risk answer.

For most Excel-based teams facing the 2026 DORA deadline, that answer is: Olive Octagon.

Ben Joyce FIA, Founder & CEO, Olive Octagon

Ben Joyce FIA

Founder and CEO, Olive Octagon

Ben has over 25 years of experience in software development, with a focus on actuarial and financial reporting systems.

He is passionate about using technology to improve productivity and performance in regulatory reporting and beyond.

As the founder of Olive Octagon, a provider of various software reporting solutions to the industry, he has become one of the UK's leading voices on regulation and compliance.


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