IDENTRUS TRUST SYSTEM NETS THREE MORE BANKS

Royal Bank of Scotland, Wells Fargo and Sanwa have joined the Identrus global trust system, which is looking to improve security in B2B Internet commerce.

Three more financial institutions--Royal Bank of Scotland, Sanwa and Wells Fargo--have gone live on the Identrus global trust system for business-to-business Internet commerce. Customers of the three banks can now use electronic identities, or "Identrus Global IDs," to engage in secure B2B commerce with a new level of trust in the integrity of their transactions.

The three banks, plus four others (ABN AMRO Bank, Bank of America, Deutsche Bank and HypoVereinsbank) that went live six months ago, have completed extensive technology testing and business process auditing to ensure the trustworthiness of their corporate customers' Identrus Global IDs. Customers who obtain Identrus Global IDs can identify trading partners on the Internet, prove their communications haven't changed in transit, and compile an auditable record of their transactions.

The banks will deploy a host of new applications that take advantage of the identity trust that Identrus provides. These applications include document signing, financial services for e-marketplaces, foreign exchange management, Internet-based payments and electronic bill payment and presentment (EBPP).

Royal Bank of Scotland went live in April with a digital signing application that is accelerating the asset financing process and delivering related workflow efficiencies for both customers and the bank. The Lombard document signing system lets employees of Sixt Kennings Ltd., a subsidiary of vehicle rental giant Sixt rent a car, sign leasing documents online with Lombard, the asset finance arm of Royal Bank of Scotland Group. This document signing system eliminates the time and trouble of traditional paperwork.

"Identrus digitizes the end-to-end leasing process, allowing us to provide a more streamlined and efficient service, which gives customers real-time access to information and ultimately boosts the management of working capital," according to Andy Ross, head of e-commerce and Internet for Royal Bank of Scotland.

Royal Bank of Scotland will be extending the Lombard Document Signing System to other bank businesses and customers, and is also planning to use Identrus to provide secure e-mail, government filings and electronic payments.

Sanwa Bank of Japan is participating in the development of financial solutions for e-marketplaces. The bank's Financial Gateway service will enable corporate customers to identify trading partners, make payments, factor accounts receivable, escrow funds and provide other financial services. These solutions will help deliver the efficiencies long promised by e-marketplaces.

"Identrus gives our customers an integrated, cost-effective way to bring more value to e-marketplaces," according to Yoshihiro Hashimoto, general manager of payment strategies and solutions at Sanwa Bank.

Wells Fargo has gone live with its WellsSecure Identrus Certificate Authority. Wells Fargo is actively pursuing several initiatives using WellsSecure to secure the e-commerce activities of its customers and to enable its own applications to use Identrus Global IDs.

"With Wells Fargo going live with Identrus, we'll help drive the Identrus initiative forward and enable our corporate and middle-market customers to engage in e-commerce with trading partners with complete confidence," according to David J. Zuercher, executive vice president at Wells Fargo International Group.