Integrion Buys Visa Interactive-(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 25, 1997--
The Visa-Integrion Transaction Strengthens Integrion's Position In On-line Banking and Enhances Visa's Electronic Payment Service
Integrion Financial Network has acquired Visa Interactive (VI), a wholly owned remote-banking subsidiary of Visa International.
The acquisition gives Integrion an end-to-end bill payment service and enhances market opportunities for Visa's electronic-payment service - Visa ePay.
Under the agreement, Integrion will acquire the assets and operations of Visa Interactive, with Visa becoming an equity owner of Integrion. Visa will retain Visa ePay, an electronic payment solution that will become a preferred product for Integrion. Integrion, in turn, will be the preferred provider of access to electronic bill payment and presentment services for Visa.
In addition, Christopher F. Schellhorn, president and chief operating officer of Visa Interactive will continue to run the Herndon, Va. operation and become director of operations for Integrion. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
The agreement between the two companies allows for a paperless banking and bill payment solution for financial institutions, their on-line consumers, and the growing number of recurring billers that desire to send and receive bills electronically.
"Both Integrion and Visa Interactive share a bank-centric philosophy, where financial institutions take responsibility for their customers' electronic commerce experience," said William M. Fenimore Jr. managing director of Integrion.
"Integrion sees a tremendous market opportunity to leverage Visa's expertise in on-line banking and electronic bill payment to provide services to our combined customer financial institutions - which represent more than 60 percent of consumer households in North America.
"We look forward to maintaining a long term relationship with the Visa organization to provide electronic commerce services to the financial institution industry."
This acquisition brings more than 60 financial institution customers to Integrion which already has the endorsement of 16 of the largest banks in North America. "Visa and Integrion are remote banking organizations owned by and dedicated to financial institutions," said William E. Stewart, executive vice president of Visa.
"The market has evolved to the point where the logical thing to do is jointly leverage our skills and resources to deliver unparalleled value to financial institutions and their on-line customers."
Integrion and Visa Interactive officials said they expect to efficiently merge overall operations. Both companies are proponents of multiple access devices including the internet, personal financial management software and telephones. Moreover, Integrion expects to maintain relationships that Visa Interactive has established with technology providers such as MECA, Home Financial Network and Microsoft.
"Integrion is enthusiastic about working with Visa Interactive customers and partners to enhance and expand electronic bill payment, bill presentment, and remote banking services," said Fenimore. "Customers will now have access to the Integrion platform and the benefits associated with its economies of scale and shared development. We are dedicated to a smooth transition."
The sale of Visa Interactive marks a bank-friendly turning point in the industry, said Stewart.
"We have made substantial progress to ensure that financial institutions are in the driver's seat. As an industry first, we developed a bank-brandable and bank controlled solution to reinforce their central role.
"Looking around at the industry today, I'd say banks are in a great position, and I am confident that Integrion will continue to deliver remote banking solutions that banks need," he said.
"As a customer of Visa Interactive, we look forward to working with the Integrion organization to further our remote banking strategies," said Richard K. Davis, executive vice president of Star Banc, "Furthermore, we believe Integrion's operating philosophy is consistent with the intentions of the banking industry to continue to play a prominent role in electronic commerce."
Stewart added that Visa will continue to aggressively market Visa ePay which channels electronic payments between customers banks and biller banks. A preferred product to Integrion , Visa ePay is also currently used by the Government Services Administration (GSA) and other organizations seeking full electronic payment programs.
Integrion Financial Network
Integrion Financial Network provides interactive banking and electronic commerce solutions to financial institutions. Through the Interactive Financial Services (IFS) platform, Integrion offers financial institutions a network through which electronic transactions flow from multiple consumer access points to a bank's host system and/or processor.
Integrion's operating philosophy allows banks to determine the manner and format in which home banking and electronic commerce services are offered, ensuring consistency with the bank's full range of services, effective branding by the bank and maximum customer benefit.
The owners of Integrion are ABN AMRO North America, Bank One, Bank of America, Barnett Bank, Comerica, First Chicago NBD, Fleet Financial, IBM, Key Corp, Mellon Bank, Michigan National Bank, NationsBank, Norwest, PNC Bank Royal Bank of Canada, US Bancorp, Visa U.S.A. and Washington Mutual Inc. Additional information about Integrion can be found on the Internet at www.integrion.net .
Visa
Visa is the preferred payment brand and the largest consumer payment system worldwide. It plays a pivotal role in advancing new payment products and technologies to benefit its more than 20,700 member financial institutions, their cardholders and the global economy.
Visa's 571 million cards are accepted at more than 14 million worldwide locations including more than 341,000 ATM's in the Visa Global ATM Network. Visa's Internet address is www.visa.com .
CONTACT:
Integrion
by
Al Paul Lefton
Grant F. Evans, 215/351-4210
grantevans@lefton.com
or
Visa USA
Greg Jones, 415/432-2753
gjones@visa.com
KEYWORD: GEORGIA CALIFORNIA
BW0057 AUG 25,1997
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