CheckFree Names Peter F. Sinisgalli President -- Retains Chief Operating Officer Responsibilities, Title --
ATLANTA, May 12 /PRNewswire/ -- CheckFree (Nasdaq: CKFR - news), the leading provider of financial electronic commerce services, software and related products, today announced that its Board of Directors has approved the promotion of Peter (Pete) F. Sinisgalli, 43, to president and chief operating officer, effective immediately. Sinisgalli has served as the Company's executive vice president and chief operating officer since October of 1996.
(Photo: newscom.com )
Peter J. Kight, who remains chairman and chief executive officer, previously held the president's title.
''We are poised for financial electronic commerce -- through electronic billing and payment -- to become a reality not just for early adopters of technology, but for the average consumer. This vastly broadened consumer acceptance will change the dynamics of our Company, and it is time for us to reflect that by expanding the structure of our leadership,'' said Kight. ''Pete's move to president gives us the ability to take on -- even faster and better than we have to date -- the challenges and opportunities that an emerging market presents as it accelerates to a main street market,'' Kight added.
Since joining CheckFree, Sinisgalli has guided the executive team responsible for the operations for each of CheckFree's three divisions: Electronic Commerce, Investment Services and Software. Under his management, the Company's revenues have more than tripled from $76.7 million for the twelve months ended June 30, 1996 to approximately $245 million estimated for the Company's 1999 fiscal year. During the same period, the Company's market value has more than doubled to its current market capitalization of more than $2 billion.
As president and chief operating officer, Sinisgalli will continue to be responsible for the day-to-day management of CheckFree's operations.
''CheckFree's excellent management team and committed associates have enabled it to become the clear leader in financial electronic commerce,'' said Sinisgalli. ''The challenges ahead are many, but with this team I am confident we will continue to lead in delivering the highest quality, most broadly available, most reliable financial electronic commerce solutions on the market, even as competition escalates,'' said Sinisgalli.
During Sinisgalli's tenure, CheckFree's management team successfully directed the Company to profitability and achieved several milestone accomplishments. The Electronic Commerce division, which generates nearly 70 percent of CheckFree's revenue, successfully developed and launched the industry's first electronic billing and payment service, CheckFree E-Bill(TM), in March of 1997. Forty-nine of the nation's leading billers -- representing nearly a half-billion bills per month -- have contracted to use CheckFree E-Bill, and 21 are in-market with the service, making CheckFree E-Bill the only solution able to manage the electronic distribution and payment of a significant number of bills via the Internet. These electronic bills can be received and paid at more than 20 distribution sites today, including First Union, Bank One, Charles Schwab, Prudential Securities and Intuit's Quicken® 98/99.
CheckFree's management team also engineered the successful integration of Intuit Services Corporation, of which CheckFree completed its acquisition in early 1997, into the company's existing electronic payment processing operations. Today, the Electronic Commerce division processes an average of 11 million electronic payments per month for more than 2.8 million consumers on behalf of more than 350 banks, credit unions and brokerage firms.
CheckFree's Investment Services division, which provides portfolio management and other services to investment firms, has grown from 276,000 portfolios managed at the quarter ended September 30, 1996 to more than 630,000 today. The division also significantly broadened the products and services it is able to offer its traditional customer base of institutional money managers, and expanded its reach into the growing financial planner market, by acquiring Mobius Group last March.
Since Sinisgalli joined CheckFree, its Software Services division has sharpened its focus on Automated Clearinghouse (ACH) and reconciliation software for financial institutions and other businesses by divesting eight of the properties CheckFree gained through its acquisition of Servantis Systems Holdings in 1996. When sold, these properties generated in excess of $90 million in cash for the Company, adding to the more than $50 million in revenue they generated while they were held. Today, CheckFree Software Services provides products that manage more than 80 percent of all ACH transactions, provides the market-leading reconciliation software, and has launched a new service that enables customers to contract with CheckFree for ACH systems management on their sites.
About CheckFree
Founded in 1981, CheckFree (www.checkfree.com ), the operating subsidiary of CheckFree Holdings Corp., is the leading provider of electronic commerce services, software and related products for more than 2.8 million consumers, 1,000 businesses and 850 financial institutions. CheckFree designs, develops and markets services that enable its customers to make electronic payments and collections, automate paper-based recurring financial transactions and conduct secure transactions on the Internet.
After more than a year of beta testing, CheckFree launched the nation's first fully integrated electronic billing and payment solution, CheckFree E-Bill, in March of 1997. Today, the Company has multi-year contracts with nearly 50 of the nation's top billers to provide online billing and payment through the CheckFree distribution network.
SOURCE: CheckFree Corporation
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