Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Contents Episys Member Business Services 4 NetTeller Cash Management 4 ipay Biz 2.0 4 RemitPlus Remittance/Lockbox 5 Customer Payment Portal 5 Hosted Pay Page 6 Episys MBS Lending Services 6 LendingNetwork 7 ACH Client 8 ACH/Check Conversion Services 9 ipay BillSimple 10 BusinessManager 10 Remote Deposit Anywhere 10 godough and PointMobility sm Mobile Banking 11 Margin Maximizer Suite 11 SymConnect 12 2 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Introduction Small businesses remain an untapped market, and their satisfaction levels with banks have declined over the last couple of years. 1 Member business service is a key growth opportunity for most credit unions. If developing your business member portfolio is a high priority, how can you best meet the needs of commercial accounts? Depending on the size and type of businesses you deal with, serving these clients can be complicated. From in-depth account analysis, to the intricacies of business lending, to the increasing demand for online tools, business banking requires a mature hardware and software framework. The functionality needed is built into the Episys platform, and the software is available in your current configuration or as add-on products designed for Episys integration. To attract commercial clients, Symitar puts an emphasis on user-friendly, intuitive methodology along with superior customer service and support. This guide will help you evaluate our member business products and provide a starting place for deciding what you want to offer. 1 The IT Priorities of U.S. Credit Unions. The Aite Group. February, 2011 3 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Built-In and Standalone Business Services Symitar products can easily handle the common needs of commercial members. You can find many solutions in the Episys Member Business Services (Episys MBS) suite. Episys MBS is built in to your Episys core, so users enjoy the intuitive Episys user interface and its streamlined management capabilities. This includes drag-and-drop functionality, user-friendly toolbars, and wizard-based assistance. For solutions not covered by Episys MBS, Symitar offers standalone products that are compatible with Episys and seamlessly integrate with it. This guide includes complementary products from ProfitStars, a Jack Henry & Associates Inc. company. Payments and Payment Processing As credit unions deploy small-business-specific solutions, they will be looking for solutions that can address their need to offer capabilities such as online payroll, small-business-specific bill payment and presentment, and electronic invoice presentment and payment. 2 When a member inquires about a commercial account with your institution, you want to have a turnkey payment solution to offer. If your solution turns a chore into an automated process, you ll have a happy member. If it s equally simple for you to implement and use, there likely will be quick staff acceptance of the product and a better return on your investment. For credit unions that use NetTeller Online Banking, there is the Episys MBS module, NetTeller Cash Management. This optional application offers extensive entitlement options, including dual control, as well as ACH and wire transfers. NetTeller Online Banking also includes ipay Solutions ipay OneClick, which provides one-time and recurring online bill payment options. Symitar is proud to offer a standalone payment product especially for business members: ipay Biz 2.0 from ProfitStars. Hundreds of institutions have successfully employed this popular software. It can be easily integrated into existing single signon online banking. ipay Biz 2.0 is highly customizable and offers unparalleled customer service and smooth implementation. Business users get convenience and peace of mind through two expedited payment options: a guaranteed electronic payment option and an overnight check payment option. Wire origination and transfer services are also included. Features of Biz 2.0 include the flexibility provided by more entitlement controls than any competing product. This includes the ability to set transaction caps, to delegate payment tasks as needed, and to set dual account signature requirements. Biz 2.0 also enables person-to-person and account-to-account transfers, tracking and sending rush payments, and creating customized auditing reports. This software enables a business to pay any number of employees electronically. It can send payroll deposits to multiple accounts simultaneously. It also seamlessly integrates with ipay BillSimple, described in detail in the Accounts Receivable section of this document. Equally important is the fact that Biz 2.0 includes first-class customer service and implementation. You ll receive: Fully branded member support. ipay Solutions staff provides this at no extra cost. Compatibility and integration. It works together with most any online banking provider thanks to ipay s use of open source software. A simple five-step implementation process. This includes comprehensive training and a single dedicated coordinator to serve as the point-person between your credit union and the implementation team. 2 Ibid 4 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Both NetTeller Bill Pay and Biz 2.0 provide solutions to the most common small business payment needs. Suppose, however, that you have a commercial account with special requirements. Maybe you have a customer that needs the ability to scan and process large numbers of checks, vouchers, stubs, or coupons. ProfitStar s RemitPlus Remittance/Lockbox product is ideal for these accounts. RemitPlus enables a member business to quickly scan and endorse checks and payment coupons. It s an affordable, turnkey solution and is scalable to fit the smallest nonprofit as well as the largest lockbox provider. RemitPlus currently supports 80 billing systems including commercial and custom platforms and employs a powerful ProjectBuilder engine capable of handling simple-to-complex ASCII interface file formats. RemitPlus supports electronic deposits such as Check 21 and ACH files to national and community financial institutions alike. The use of this system can substantially reduce labor costs. It eliminates the need for multiple employees to sort, reconcile, process, endorse, and manually post accounts receivable payments and courier checks. With an intuitive (red light/green light) user interface, users are clicks away from scanning, entry, balancing, depositing, and exporting to virtually any billing system. Some key features of this product include: Lookup Tables. RemitPlus supports building and/or attaching to existing lookup tables for handling check or field level validation, auto population, and black list needs. Comprehensive Archive and Search. It provides easy yet comprehensive access to all check and associated transaction information processed through the system including custom fields, rejects, images, and MICR data. Research is coupled with robust user rights management to view or hide custom fields, check MICR, check top, and check back. Check and List. Check and List allows batch level, transaction, and line item level field entry for any number of custom fields as well as manual balancing verification against the offset deposit check. RemitWeb Option. RemitWeb provides a new dimension to your existing item processing research, allowing lockbox end customers to view processed images of coupons, checks, and transactions as well as securely download daily accounting system extracts and reports. RemitWeb can also provide enhanced item research and file dissemination. Convene Remote Keying Option. Convene provides the ability for workers at a remote facility to correct exceptions on checks, coupons, forms, etc., in case you do not want to add to the workload of your internal staff. Now let s consider the needs of a very different type of business account. Some small businesses and charities may have fairly modest payment needs. If you have payment customers who don t want or need to scan checks, install a shopping cart, or even provide their own secure payments page, Symitar has a simple solution. It s called ProfitStars Customer Payment Portal. Customer Payment Portal creates a custom-branded URL for the business or nonprofit member. Your member simply puts a link to this URL on his or her website and customers can go there to make payments or donations. This setup is ideal for charities, day care centers, property management, homeowner associations, and other organizations that do not have a variety of products to sell but do receive regular payments. Some key features of Customer Payment Portal are listed below: Payment options. There are three ways to make payments. (1) Single payments; (2) recurring payments from a checking or savings account, processed as a WEB ACH; or (3) single or recurring payments with a credit card. Access options. ipay QuickPay enables users make a single payment without having to log in or create a user account. No account information is stored. Sign-in/Register requires log-in and user account and stores user account information on our servers. Your member may let users choose between Quick Pay and Sign-in/Register. Security. Because ProfitStars hosts the site, neither you nor your members need to worry about storing sensitive information or meeting PCI DSS requirements. We use the same strong security measures provided to our large merchant customers. 5 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Maintenance and reporting. Members and their customers are able to view scheduled and processed payments, edit contact or other information, and reset passwords. Data can be exported in various formats, such as.doc,.xls,.cvs, or loaded into popular accounting programs such as Quickbooks. Customization. Your members can customize fields to fit their needs. For example, one member organization may want to use the term customer while another may want donor or benefactor. You can add other functions, such as convenience fee processing and ACH transaction re-presentment. A similar product is ProfitStars Hosted Pay Page. Hosted Pay Page also gives small businesses a secure payment service. Unlike Customer Payment Portal, this product delivers shopping cart functionality, so users may select a variety of items, put them in their cart, and pay for them all at check-out. Among the significant features: Accepts checks, credit and debit (as long as the debit card has a credit card logo). Hosted on secure server by ProfitStars. Credit unions don t have to worry about compliance issues. User-friendly. Users who click on a payment link are guided through the purchase process and then returned to the business website. Business Lending All businesses face financial hurdles as they grow and evolve to satisfy the changing needs of their customers. Among these hurdles are operating expenses, maximizing cash flow, and meeting payroll. Companies must also manage business fluctuations that may be seasonal or occur due to other economic variables. Symitar offers tools that make it easy for you to help your commercial customers weather these changes. Episys MBS Lending Services includes an array of loan tools. The capabilities listed below are built in to your existing Episys core. Lending processes Revolving and non-revolving lines of credit Variable rate loans including interest floors/ceilings and periodic rate caps Multiple repayment programs Interest-only loans Balloon loans Leases Loan document origination, via SymForm, PowerOn or a third-party application Direct and indirect liability tracking There are additional Episys MBS lending tools available to you as add-ons. If, for example, you require Participation sales, SBA 1502 Reporting, or Dealer Reserve Accounting, you can add them to your core system. There is also a comprehensive package of collateral and document tracking capabilities that you can add on to your current lending package: Collateral and document tracking Business, real estate, and consumer collateral Collateral pledged to multiple loans Pledges tracked at the loan, account, or application level Reporting of missing, waived, expired, or soon-to-expire documents 6 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Collateral documents Financial documents Business member organization documents Monitor compliance with loan policy Track documents due at specific intervals Document exception notices for members Document exceptions/collections interface Symitar also offers a tool for companies that may not meet your requirements for in-house financing. Typical candidates are businesses such as startups, those with low turning or non-performing accounts receivable, strained cash flow, tax liens, or limited profitability for any reason. For this type of customer, we offer the ProfitStars LendingNetwork. The network is a collection of more than 20 dedicated, responsive commercial providers. They assume the risks and provide financing options. Your credit union receives a referral fee and retains the customer s deposit relationship. Problem lines of credit can be removed from your books and still be served. The Lending Network includes products for: Standard, construction, medical, retail/self-pay factoring Asset-based lending Inventory, purchasing, and equipment financing Collections Commercial real estate SBA (Small Business Administration) loans One of the best aspects of this program is its simple, one-step method of submitting proposals online. Another critical feature is that you can track customers as they gain financial strength and judge when to offer them a commercial line of credit. It s a way of growing new business. ACH and Deposit Processing Commercial accounts look to their financial institutions when they need secure processing of their credit and debit transactions. Efficient ACH and debit processing will attract and retain business customers while increasing your income. 7 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Once a business has found an institution that provides reliable ACH services, it will likely keep close ties, and the chances of cross-selling increase. Fortunately for Episys users, several of these capabilities are built in to your Episys MBS system. For example, Episys will handle bulk deposit processing and back-office reconciliation. It also provides the ability to perform: Sweep processing that includes Hierarchical approach Share-to-share Share-to-loan Loan-to-share Sweeps to external accounts Zero balance accounts (ZBA) Blocking of ACH debits by SEC codes ACH and wire processing The previously mentioned NetTeller Cash Management module offers ACH origination of both payments and collections. Symitar also offers standalone products, should these be more suited to an institution s needs. One of these is ProfitStars ACH Client, which provides the features and power to compete with the largest financial institutions. For commercial clients, ACH Client offers a privately branded online platform hosted by ProfitStars that you can reach from your website or online banking portal. This product can manage an unlimited number of commercial customers. Your business members are able to consolidate their deposits from multiple locations at your institution, reduce the number of checks written, and automatically debit accounts with monthly fees. Some of the many features of ACH Client: Versatility. ACH Client generates direct deposit of payroll and direct debit for receivables, handles one-time or recurring transactions, splits payment amounts between accounts using amount or percentage-based rules, handles all ACH check conversion options, generates user-mapped export files for Quicken and other financial management applications, and facilitates processing for member-generated ACH files or converts member files in other formats into ACH. Control. Your credit union can sculpt unique processing rules for each type of payment, set different user limits and permissions for each category of transaction, and enable only those features and functions you want to make available to each member and each user. Simplicity. ACH Client provides a single-page transaction wizard with field-specific help. Userdefined Start Pages and Quick Edit pages make navigation and transaction input fast and easy. Users see only those types of payments they are authorized to view. Security. Transactions are routed through ProfitStars SAS70 Level II service bureau, with SSL 128- bit/rc4 encryption. The credit union can require dual control for all user profile changes. For transaction processing, credit unions can mandate dual or even triple control on a category-bycategory basis. Risk Management. Your institution establishes origination exposure limits and can control the types of transaction your members can originate. Other security measures include: Adaptive, token, or both authorization options 8 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Tri-level transaction authorization options Limit origination by debit or credit (or both) and by Standard Entry Classification (SEC code) Set transaction, batch, and daily amount limits for each business member Scanning. You get batch or single-item scanning functionality for the origination of ARC, BOC, and RCK transactions. Any incomplete or error items are stored as exceptions and highlighted. There is an optional online image archive service for processed images. Reporting. Users receive detailed and summary reports for originated files. Generate on-demand reports for members, users, or system activity. Print reports or download them as PDF files. Generate account information for download into spreadsheet applications. Training. An AAP-certified training professional provides onsite software training and consultation. Others resources include online collateral materials, downloadable industry and compliance guides, and even onsite support from highly skilled sales and marketing consultants. While ACH Client provides high-powered and wide-ranging services, some credit unions may wish to offer a simpler ACH/check conversion service. Small businesses in particular may prefer the option of ProfitStars ACH/Check Conversion Services. If a company receives consumer checks through the mail or from a drop box location, you can process the payments as electronic transactions with this service. All a business needs is an Internet connection and a Web browser. We provide a check scanner along with access to a user-friendly, online merchant portal. With ACH/Check Clearing, deposits are automatic and electronic, so companies pay less for deposit fees while reducing trips to the credit union. Paper checks can be destroyed since digital images are retained. Operations are simple: Data transmission. Our merchant portal receives the scanned and captures both a digital image and MICR information. The user keys in the dollar amount and submits the payment. Verification and processing. Our secure real-time gateway verifies account information and processes it through the Federal Reserve System s ACH network. Funds are withdrawn from the consumer s account on the next business day and deposited in the company s account within one to three business days. Accounts Receivable Any business selecting a financial institution will take a close look at its ability to enable invoicing and the management of receivables. A credit union that can provide a superior, simple deployment of these fundamental services will see increased deposits and fees that come with commercial accounts. 9 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
One of the accounts receivable products available through Symitar is ipay BillSimple from ProfitStars. ipay BillSimple is a cloud-based platform that enables small businesses to automate receivables and eliminate manual processes. Make it easy for your business members to accept both credit and check payments. Specifically designed for small businesses, it provides the ability to invoice, collect, track, and manage receivables electronically in one user-friendly system. There are many outstanding features: Institution-branded dashboard. Select from two versions. ipay BillSimple offers (1) invoicing only, or (2) invoicing and payments. The latter version accepts both ACH and credit card payments. Administrative support. ipay Solutions provides training, support, marketing, reporting, and billing services. Risk management. Security and fraud prevention are made simple through online tools and email notification. Another unique and successful accounts receivable offering is ProfitStars BusinessManager. This product enables improved cash flow for business customers. These businesses can bridge the gap between payables and receivables by getting daily cash from the credit union. In exchange for the cash, the business customer sells its accounts receivable to the credit union at a discounted rate. They are sold on a full-recourse basis with a flexible cash collateral reserve. This cash flow solution is currently in use by businesses at hundreds of financial institutions. BusinessManager provides an easy Web-based system for purchasing and managing receivables. Features include: Direct-deposit cash for business customer receivables Detailed management reports for the customer with information on aged receivables, customer balances, and credit applications BusinessManager enables a profitable, long lasting relationship with a business customer. It frees business customers to increase inventory, offer financing options to their clients, and save money by making prompt payments to suppliers. Meanwhile your institution has cross-sell opportunities and recurring revenue. Remote Deposit Services The Aite Group forecasts that the rate at which credit unions deploy remote deposit capture will quicken in pace as the technology continues to evolve and is offered to small businesses and consumers as well as middle-market and large businesses. 3 Do your small business members have to come into a branch office to handle deposits? Most institutions that want to encourage commercial accounts will offer remote deposit. It has the triple benefit of convenience for members, the efficiency of digital transactions, and reducing lobby traffic for routine, repetitive tasks. Symitar offers a cutting edge remote deposit solution: ProfitStar s Remote Deposit Anywhere (RDA). This product enables members to deposit checks using a compatible smartphone, tablet, or desktop scanner. Business customers can capture check images from any location at any time and know that their funds have been securely deposited as Check 21 items. Like other self-service solutions, RDA meets customer needs while reducing labor and operating costs. RDA software ensures accurate image capture by providing distortion correction, lighting correction, and auto cropping. It can distinguish between a business-size and smaller personal check, and employs state-of-the-art 256-bit encryption. Institutions can set constraints such as different deposit limits for mobile-based transactions vs. traditional deposits. 3 Ibid 10 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Mobile Banking Busy commercial account owners need the ability to conduct banking business anywhere. godough is our mobile banking solution for phones, and PointMobility SM is for tablets. Primary features of each include: The ability to brand these applications for your institution. The interface dynamically changes to look good on any screen. Support for all common accounts and activities. Functions as a seamless extension to all of the NetTeller Online Banking services. Supports multifactor authentication. Profitability Symitar s long experience with many hundreds of credit unions has enabled us to learn best practices for growing interest income. We have found proven methodologies that yield a high return on investment. Financial institutions can customize and optimize these methods. Although they apply across the board to all of your members, these methods are often critical for maximizing the value of commercial accounts One very important profitability tool is account analysis. The add-on Account Analysis module for Episys MBS tool enables the following: The ability to define up to 100 different analysis plans Promotional analysis pricing System-defined and user-defined analysis fee types (per item or flat fee pricing) Analyze several shares as one relationship Customized business checking fee options Analysis statements The ability to apply an earnings credit based on share balances Another profitability strategy is to use ProfitStars Margin Maximizer Suite, a loan and deposit pricing solution. This product is a tailored solution that follows a three-stage approach. It begins with our experts completing a thorough analysis of the factors affecting your net interest margin. We examine each of the loans booked in the previous 12 months, as well as the current deposit base. Then we begin the first stage. Stage 1: Strategy Sessions. Consultants will facilitate sessions designed to validate and enhance existing strategies, as well as develop new ones that you can easily implement. You can integrate your credit union s knowledge of its local market and its risk tolerance with our expertise in net interest margin management. It s typical to hold seven strategy sessions: introduction, commercial lending, mortgage lending, consumer lending, funding/deposits, commercial loan training, and a wrap-up session. We offer unlimited assistance, training, resources, and support in achieving the goals established during and after the initial strategy sessions. 11 Symitar Member Business Services Guide
Stage 2: Pricing Software. Once your goals are in place, it s time to begin using the Margin Maximizer Suite. The most advanced version of this product is Margin Maximizer Interactive, a hosted solution that is completely Web-based. This software can improve the loan and deposit pricing process and quickly guide a credit union to pricing scenarios that meet its overall profitability objectives. Consistent and profitable pricing for commercial and agricultural loans are based on different loan sizes, maturities, structures, and risk characteristics. Stage 3: Financial Management Process. Consultants work with your institution to implement a long-term financial management plan focused on an effective day-to-day pricing process that balances competition, growth objectives, risk management, and profitability. The ultimate aim is to increase loan volume and retail deposit growth, optimize the cost of funds, improve the loan and deposit pricing process, and enhance the institution s approach to financial management. Margin Maximizer MaxConnect. Beyond the three stages outlined above, you can simplify and extend the process with this software add-on. It enhances the capabilities of Margin Maximizer by fully leveraging its management reporting features. MaxConnect automates the input of all loans and relationships residing on the core processing system but not previously entered into Margin Maximizer. It increases the accuracy of loan, relationship, and deposit data in the Margin Maximizer database through regular updates. Third-Party Applications and Compatibility Some credit unions may have legacy or specialized third-party business applications, or software developed by their own IT staff. If this pertains to your credit union, Symitar makes it easy to connect them to your Episys core with SymConnect. Using a standard application protocol interface (API), SymConnect supports real-time, interactive data exchange (transactions, inquiries, etc.) between Episys and your application. In addition, Symitar s DirectLine OFX product enables commercial customers to securely access an institution s host computer and interact with its accounts online. NetTeller uses industry-certified Open Financial Exchange (OFX) standards and protocols so you can exchange data with financial management solutions such as Quicken and QuickBooks. We have taken further steps to assure compatibility between Episys and products produced by other companies. Symitar s Vendor Integration and Hardware Integration programs enable third-party vendors to work directly with our technicians when developing and testing software and hardware products. Our goal is take the product integration burden away from your credit union s IT department. Summary From lending, to account analysis, to cash management, there is a wide spectrum of tools built to function with Episys. You can provide service and assurance to lucrative commercial accounts with products either built into the Episys core or developed to integrate with it. With a clear view of these services you can begin to consider which products would best retain and attract business accounts. Start by investigating whether or not you re making full use of the business services that already exist within your Episys system. Once you know what you have in hand, you can begin to examine Episys MBS add-on modules as well as the various ProfitStars products. Symitar Account Executives can take advantage of the experiences of hundreds of credit unions of various sizes to help you assess your needs. As you make choices, we can also draw on the depth of our technical experience with your core processing system. Together we can assure that your business products function exactly as you want. For more information about Symitar, or to schedule a demonstration or talk to an existing user, email askus@symitar.com, call 888-SYMITAR (796-4827), or visit. 2015 Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.