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Non-Tech : NetBank(NTBK)-formerly Atlanta Internet Bank -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Narotham Reddy who wrote (1877)	6/7/1999 5:56:00 PM
From: Craig Bartels	Respond to of 2414

Found this on webstreet securities just now.. By Gilles Castonguay NEW YORK, June 7 (Reuters) - Net.B@nk Inc. Chief Executive D.R. Grimes said Monday he was interested in forming new partnerships to expand his Internet bank's services in the wake of the merger between a bigger rival and an online broker. "We already have a number of partnerships with very good companies, and we are always looking for opportunities to expand our product line," he told Reuters. "Sometimes the best way to do that ... is to find someone that already has the ability to offer that product." Grimes, who did not elaborate on the possibility of a merger with his own bank, welcomed last week's $1.8 billion deal between TeleBanc Financial Corp. <TBFC.O> and ETrade Group Inc. <EGRP.O>. He said it would help rather than hurt Net.B@nk by bringing more publicity to the small but growing sector. "It is clearly very positive," he said. "Every bank that advertises Internet banking and helps educate consumers about it will certainly help us," he explained. "So I welcome having ... more consumer acceptance of Internet banking." Net.B@nk's stock was $4.75 at $34.38 late Monday afternoon on the Nasdaq market, after suffering a 30 percent drop since its May 28 close of $42.63. Investors have lost their enthusiasm for Internet stocks in general in recent weeks. Analysts who follow the sector expect Net.B@nk to come under pressure to find a partner as a result of the June 1 merger. TeleBanc is set to pick up more customers and offer more services through ETrade. Conventional banks like Citibank <C.N>, meanwhile, are responding by providing their own online services. But Grimes did not expect the heightened competition to put his Altanta, Ga., bank out of business or alter its expansion plans. "There is not going to be just one winner in Internet banking -- there is going to be a few," he said, adding that Net.B@nk already offered online trading through a partnership with discount broker UVEST Investment Services. Among the other partnerships held by the bank is one with CheckFree Corp. <CKFR.O>, which provides its customers with electronic bill payment services. Grimes said Net.B@nk's expansion plans included a home equity line of credit and a series of insurance products. On Monday, the bank said in a statement it would offer its customers a virtual safe box for electronic documents. Grimes said the bank's ability to offer higher interest rates still gave it an advantage against regular banks, referring to one of the most alluring features of Internet banks since they have lower overhead costs than regular ones. He also dismissed analyst comments that it would have trouble getting as many people to abandon ther, it had 27,000 accounts and $526.5 million in assets. In comparison, TeleBanc had $2.6 billion in assets for the same period. Net.B@nk has about $200 million in mortgage loans. ((-- Gilles Castonguay, Financial Services Desk, +1 212 859 1570)) REUTERS Copyright 1999, Reuters News Service