Open Solutions Inc.® (NASDAQ: OPEN), a provider of integrated enabling technologies for financial institutions, announced that Royal Credit Union (RCU) of Eau Claire, Wis. has selected Open Solutions' The Complete Credit Union Solution®, a relational core data processing platform for credit unions, to address its enterprise-wide data processing needs.
With more than $650 million in assets and over 105,000 members, RCU selected Open Solutions after reviewing seven core technology providers.
"The Oracle database at the heart of Open Solutions' relational core data processing design was a key factor in our decision," said RCU's Chief Information Officer Jim Watts. "Open Solutions, architecturally, had a more stable design on the front and back-ends than the competitive products we reviewed. Open Solutions' uses a contemporary technology platform that is Windows®-based on the front end, making it easier to train our staff and also easier for them to use."
Unlike many credit unions in its market, Royal Credit Union has maintained a large business lending portfolio for many years. Its business lending portfolio is the seventh largest in the nation among credit unions, and RCU has plans to expand the business. According to Watts, RCU found that Open Solutions' business offerings and full suite of cash management products would provide the credit union the same functionality and services that its member businesses could find at a commercial bank.
"This is an opportunity for us to bring new products to market much faster than we could on our previous, legacy platform," Watts said. "Shaving time off the product to market and product development timetables is important to us. Our members deserve the best options available; this is one of the ways we are ensuring our capacity to deliver those options in a timely manner. We believe that the Open Solutions' technology will also grow with our credit union as we expand our member business offerings."
RCU also selected several Open Solutions' products including the accounts payable and general ledger suite, interactive voice response, consumer and mortgage lending, cView (CRM/business intelligence) and eCommerce Banker(TM) (cash management and Internet banking) applications.
Watts said, "We wanted a suite of products from a technology provider that could integrate our delivery channels, as well as our repositories of member information - whether from our deposit operations or our extensive lending portfolios. As a business manager, there are only a few types of tools that enable you to dramatically accelerate your growth strategy. We see technology, particularly with our relationship with Open Solutions, as one such tool. Automation led by a strategy to win gives our staff more resources and time to focus on growing the business and providing the types of financial products our members need to bolster their own fiscal goals."
Louis Hernandez, Jr., Open Solutions chairman and CEO, said, "Royal Credit Union has very unique needs, and we are happy its management team selected Open Solutions, our relational core data processing, as well as so many of our complementary product offerings. We believe that an open platform technology at the core of an institution's technology infrastructure is key to its continued success. Once that is in place, strategies can be built around the platform such as other process improvement and technology initiatives. It is no longer enough for institutions to "bolt on" yet another middleware solution to make up for the deficiencies of a legacy system. Effective delivery channels and process automation strategies truly begin with a better core platform. We are pleased that Royal Credit Union has selected our company, and we look forward to working with them in the years to come."