The $489-million financial institution cited the flexibility and integration of Fiserv products and services, plus enhanced efficiencies, as key factors in its decision to choose Fiserv.

In addition to selecting the Premier bank platform and outsourced processing services, the bank chose a comprehensive suite of Fiserv solutions, including CheckFree RXP and CheckFree Small Business for bill payment, Mobiliti for mobile banking, Business Online and Retail Online for online banking, WireXchange for wire transfers, AML Manager for anti-money laundering, Business Process Manager for new account and process management and the ACCEL/Exchange payments network. The bank already utilizes Branch Source Captureand Merchant Source Capture from Fiserv for remote deposits, Prologue for financial management, EasyLender for loan origination and item processing services.

Anchor Bank is a locally owned and managed financial institution since 1907 and primarily serves Western Washington through its 13 locations. Because they were already utilizing several key Fiserv solutions, Anchor Bank looked to Fiserv to improve operational efficiency, enhance commercial lending functionality and help expand customer relationships.

"The Premier bank platform enables better reporting, in addition to giving us quicker and easier access to data with a single sign-on. Our choice came down to the greater efficiencies and flexibility we can realize with a fully integrated Fiserv solution," said Anthony Salas, Chief Information Officer, Anchor Bank. "Anchor Bank wanted more than a provider; we wanted a partner. An expansion of our relationship with Fiserv was the best choice. We felt we could work with them to meet our goals and that they were truly on our side."

The integration of Premier with the ACCEL/Exchange payments network from Fiserv will lead to some of the biggest increases in efficiencies for Anchor Bank, according to Salas. Because all debit payments and funds access transactions will be on one system accessed by a single sign-on, the bank expects to save time previously lost to multiple data entry. Similar efficiencies will be realized now that reports created in Premier are tied to a fully integrated system.

Salas said that the integration offered by Fiserv will also help lessen the regulatory burden for Anchor Bank. The ability to pull data from the core with little or no manipulation will enable the bank to get away from a "spreadsheet mentality" by using reports and data directly from the core to send to regulators, according to Salas.

Anchor Bank will expand their digital banking capabilities with the addition of mobile banking and the enhancement of online banking and payment services for retail and business customers. The deployment of Retail Online for consumer Internet banking will bring real-time account information and financial management tools to Anchor Bank's customers. Self-service banking capabilities, integrated bill pay and seamless integration with Mobiliti are features of Retail Online that appealed to the bank. Additionally, Business Online, a corporate Internet banking solution from Fiserv, will provide Anchor Bank's business customers with anytime, anywhere online banking and bill payment and integration to treasury management, mobile banking and imaging solutions.

"Anchor Bank chose Fiserv to enhance its business processes and delivery model and to strategically position the bank for future growth. Anchor Bank is already familiar with many of our next-generation banking solutions so they knew the value, innovation and flexibility Fiserv products can bring to their customers and employees," said Teri Carstensen, division president for Bank Solutions, Fiserv. "Anchor Bank can expect to see efficiency gains at all levels as they consolidate a variety of third-party offerings into one fully integrated Fiserv system."