America's Community Bankers Endorses Fiserv as Preferred Provider of Check-Processing Services; Agreement Designed To Help ACB Members Take Advantage of Check 21

Business Wire, Oct 7, 2004

BROOKFIELD, Wis. -- America's Community Bankers, the member driven trade association for progressive community banks, has endorsed Fiserv, Inc. (Nasdaq:FISV) to be the preferred provider of a comprehensive range of check-processing products and services to help ACB member banks prepare for the implementation of Check 21.

Check 21, a law designed to encourage innovation in check processing, will be implemented beginning on Oct. 28, 2004. Initially, financial institutions will be required primarily to accept substitute checks - essentially documents produced from images of the actual checks - as well as to educate their staffs on various aspects of the law and to notify customers of the changes.

However, many industry observers believe financial institutions eventually will use the push from Check 21 to move one day to using only images for processing checks.

Fiserv, the nation's largest third-party check processor, will offer ACB members a unique member benefit package that provides flexibility in preparing for the changes expected from Check 21. Fiserv can provide a fully outsourced or an in-house solution that includes image-based check processing, substitute-check creation, Check 21 training for employees and participation in the Fiserv Clearing Network.

The Fiserv Clearing Network will enable financial institutions to clear and settle checks through one connection to Fiserv. The network is designed initially to work in the paper-based world, but will evolve as processing moves toward using only images.

"We chose Fiserv for this relationship because of the company's unmatched ability to provide a comprehensive solution for banks looking at their options for image-based check processing," said Diane Casey-Landry, ACB President and CEO. "We believe Fiserv will provide a level of service our members have come to expect from our endorsed partners."

Norm Balthasar, Fiserv Chief Operating Officer, said Fiserv already enjoys a close relationship with many ACB member banks.

"We look forward to working with America's Community Bankers to improve that relationship and offer superior image-based check processing services to all of their members," Balthasar said. "Our intent is to offer an all-encompassing, low-risk product that will allow ACB members to quickly take advantage of all the benefits envisioned from Check 21."

America's Community Bankers is the member driven national trade association representing community banks that pursue progressive, entrepreneurial and service-oriented strategies to benefit their customers and communities. To learn more about ACB, visit www.AmericasCommunityBankers.com.

Fiserv is the nation's largest third-party check processing provider, annually handling more than 4.2 billion checks for more than 1,700 clients. In addition, the company's Information Technology, Inc. (ITI) and Fiserv Imagesoft units provide image-based check processing software used by more than 500 additional financial institutions to process checks in-house. Fiserv operates nearly 50 check-processing centers across the U.S., another six in Canada and a national image archive that adds nearly 7 million check images each day.

Fiserv, Inc. (Nasdaq:FISV) provides information management systems and services to the financial industry, including transaction processing, outsourcing, business process outsourcing and software and systems solutions. The company serves more than 15,000 clients worldwide, including banks, broker-dealers, credit unions, financial planners/investment advisers, insurance companies and agents, self-funded employers, lenders and savings institutions. Headquartered in Brookfield, Wisconsin, Fiserv reported $2.7 billion in processing and services revenues for 2003. Fiserv can be found on the Internet at www.fiserv.com.