American Express has signed an agreement to acquire Atlanta-based Harbor Payments, a privately-held provider of electronic invoice presentment and payment (EIPP) systems. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Founded in 2000 Harbor Payments provides hosted technology that helps companies eliminate paper processing and make their supply chain more efficient. The company has approximately 200 clients.
American Express says the Harbor technology will become the basis of its new suite of 'source-to-settle' electronic purchasing systems, named S2S. It will begin marketing the package to corporations in the US in January 2007 and has plans to expand on a global basis later.
"Our clients have been asking American Express to play a broader role in helping them manage expenses and reduce costs across a broad array of purchasing categories. Simply put, we can help clients do more with less," says Gordon Smith, president of American Express Global Commercial Card. "The goal is to help companies automate and seamlessly integrate the multiple steps in the source-to-settle process."
The acquisition, subject to regulatory approval, is expected to close by the end of the year.