Alogent Announces Agreement with NetBank to Deliver Check 21 Technology; Internet Bank Poised for Growth in Merchant and Corporate Payment and Deposit Processing

Business Wire, May 17, 2004

Business Editors

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 17, 2004

Alogent Corp., a provider of payment transaction processing solutions for global financial institutions, remittance processors and payment processors, announced an agreement with NetBank (www.netbank.com), the country's first commercially successful Internet bank, to implement the bank's Check 21 payment and deposit automation technology platform that enables Intrabank Straight Through Check Processing(TM) and Interbank Exchange. This technology helps banks adapt to check truncation and paper-to-electronic transformation, while providing image-based product and service revenue opportunities, reducing processing costs and improving quality through automation. NetBank, with customers in all 50 states, is a wholly owned subsidiary of NetBank, Inc. (Nasdaq: NTBK).

Brian Geisel, CEO of Alogent Corporation, said, "We are pleased to partner with NetBank to deliver the technology solutions they need to pursue a growth strategy in their deposit and payment processing business and quickly gain a competitive advantage through changing payments regulations."

Alogent delivers a full complement of Check 21-enabled payment and deposit processing solutions utilizing a single platform to accommodate both intrabank and interbank transactions involving paper, data, image, and check conversion. Each solution uses Sierra(R) Xchange(TM), the company's Unified Payments Gateway, operating as a real-time, intelligent, payment processing engine. Sierra Xchange collects, corrects, balances, and distributes paper, data, and image transactions from all points of origination to multiple, configurable endpoints, including image archives, payment systems, ACH conversion, IRD printing, and image exchange networks.

With this technology platform, NetBank will be able to offer image-based deposit services to customers regardless of their geographical location. Merchants and small business customers, for example, will be able to make deposits into NetBank electronically, from their places of business, eliminating the time and manual effort required for deposit preparation or the need to visit a local branch. The image workflow and deposit automation technology tremendously improves the quality of customer deposits by removing the opportunity for keying errors and by providing direct updates to their corporate accounts receivable systems. This accelerated deposit processing will enable NetBank to offer earlier funds availability, faster access to transaction information, and potentially lower processing fees.

NetBank, Inc. Chief Strategic Initiatives Executive, Mickey Ross, said, "We serve an affluent, tech-savvy customer base that prefers the economic benefits and convenience of branchless banking. We are continually working to make their banking experience more efficient and convenient. Our relationship with Alogent will allow us to strengthen our already compelling, image-based suite of services we offer our personal, small business and merchant customers. We also intend to offer these services to smaller institutions that are looking to for ways to do business better, cheaper and faster."

Gwenn Bezard, senior banking analyst for Celent Communications, said, "NetBank's initiative is an excellent example of the added-value services that banks can offer with check imaging technologies. The passage of Check 21 and the banking industry's move to check image exchange is also clearly opening new horizons for branchless banks such as NetBank."

Alogent's streamlined technology platform will enable NetBank to bring its deposit processing in house in the short-term and positions NetBank for Check 21 by enabling full check truncation from point-of-presentment through central processing. It will accelerate the capture and processing of payment information and give NetBank real-time access to customer transaction data, images and other information that may be used by the institution to optimize revenue streams, reduce fraud and improve customer retention through better service.

About NetBank

NetBank(R), the country's first commercially successful Internet bank, provides a full line of financial services in all 50 states designed around the needs and lifestyles of its customers. Since it operates no branches, NetBank is focused solely on providing the best automated banking experience in the industry while passing along its cost savings through higher deposit rates and free account services. Through its mortgage lending subsidiaries, Market Street Mortgage(R) and RBMG(R), NetBank ranks as a top 30 U.S. mortgage lender. The company's ATM and merchant processing subsidiary, NetBank Payment Systems, operates the fourth-largest proprietary ATM network of any U.S. bank. NetBank, Equal Housing Lender and Member FDIC, is a primary operating subsidiary of NetBank, Inc. (Nasdaq: NTBK), a diversified financial services company. For more information on NetBank's products and services, please visit www.netbank.com.

About Alogent