Independence CB Taps Outsourcer

New York-based Independence Community Bank has turned to an ASP solution to provide online cash management services.

The $7 billion bank has tapped the Internet Banking Suite from Magnet Communications to support an online banking strategy that targets small to medium-sized business customers.

A key element of that strategy is to upgrade business customers from the bank's consumer banking platform to one that better addresses their needs, said Dan Harris, first vice president of corporate services at Independence Community Bank. "This is a way for us to offer a wide range of cash management services via the Internet."

Speed to market considerations and Magnet's reputation as an ASP provider were the deciding factors. "Magnet has the integration expertise to help us ramp up quickly, operate smoothly and allow us to move up market," Harris said.

Offering sophisticated online business banking services bolsters the bank's efforts to grow deposits among existing customers. The Magnet suite's balance reporting modules are "more robust than anything I've seen in the market," Harris said. "You can build products and services around that."

Independence will use Magnet's hosted service platform, which incorporates the Internet Banking Suite and iPortBiz business banking portal.