S1 Corporation (Nasdaq: SONE), a leading global provider of Enterprise solutions for the financial services industry, today announced that Republic Bank & Trust Company has extended its relationship with S1 with the selection of S1 Business Banking on the S1 Enterprise Platform.
Headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky with assets of $2 billion, Republic Bank will leverage S1 Business Banking to offer best-of-breed cash management capabilities, targeted products and unrivaled service to expand its small- to mid-market business customer base. In addition, the bank is currently deploying S1 Teller and S1 Sales and Service platform to drive down transaction costs in its branch operations, and empower its tellers with the information they need to identify and pursue new revenue opportunities.
According to Cathy Slider, senior vice president, director of Cash Management at Republic Bank, "The bank currently serves more than 2,500 online business customers throughout Kentucky and Indiana. However, our goal is to grow this segment by 1,000 users each year. S1's Business Banking Solution will support Republic's efforts to increase its business banking client base and cross-sell opportunities, while continuing our mission of forging customer loyalty by offering superior products and services."
"It was important for us to not only choose a best-of-breed solution, but to partner with a company that delivers the same exceptional level of service and commitment to customers that we refer to as the 'Republic Way.' In our review of several vendors, S1 stood out in its ability to meet both sets of criteria," added Slider.
S1 Business Banking provides competitive, cash management functionality specifically targeted to the Small-Office-Home-Office to middle market business customers. The solution features real-time information on accounts and transactions with self-service features such as online statements, customizable information reports, ACH, international and domestic wires, account transfers, and bill payment options. The S1 Enterprise Platform, a single J2EE-based open architecture upon which the S1 Business Banking application resides, will allow Republic to integrate third-party customer-facing functionality - including account aggregation, check imaging, and QuickBooks and Quicken through WebConnect. Not only does an open, common platform give Republic the opportunity to easily add advanced, new functionality for its customers, it will also help the bank significantly reduce maintenance, implementation and integration costs.
With the selection of S1 Business Banking, Republic will also gain the ability to quickly and easily manage and customize its customer-facing applications, and offer products, promotions and brands based on the bank's specific product and service strategies through the S1 Application Manager built into S1's online Enterprise applications. According to Slider, "Our ability to offer more individualized service will enable us to generate increased customer loyalty and market share in a highly competitive marketplace. The flexibility of S1's Enterprise solutions was another key factor in our final decision."
S1 Business Banking will be hosted at S1's state-of-the-art data center in Atlanta, Ga., which currently supports millions of end users for several hundred financial institutions around the world. By operating S1 Business Banking through the S1 Data Center, Republic will benefit from reduced maintenance, integration and implementation costs, as well as decreased operational risks.
According to Jaime Ellertson, CEO at S1 Corporation, "S1's expanding relationship with Republic is proof of the real value that we're delivering to our growing base of more than 4,000 banks. Republic is a great example of a bank that is continually looking for innovative ways to grow its customer base, increase cross-sale opportunities, and raise the level of customer service. We are extremely pleased to provide Republic with the advanced Enterprise technology and applications to help them meet its forward-thinking goals."
According to Christine Barry, senior analyst-wholesale banking at Celent Communications, "S1's strength lies in its ability to offer its customers a broad portfolio of products to meet all their banking needs. This enables S1 to establish deep relationships with its customers and illustrates the vendor's ability to keep its customers satisfied."