MCLEAN, Va., May 31, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- First Horizon Bank (NYSE:FHN) announced today that its electronic check product, First Deposit Plus, is a customer success among Washington area businesses. First Horizon is one of the first area banks to provide this state-of-the-art check imaging service.
With the First Deposit Plus product, Washington-area business managers can make check deposits from the convenience and safety of their own offices, as well as access their money sooner than before, which improves funds availability. This results in a more immediate availability of funds for reducing debt or increasing investments. Businesses can also save time and money because they no longer need to send employees to the bank to make daily deposits or arrange for pickups, which increases productivity.
"Our First Deposit Plus product is one more way First Horizon is offering local businesses the opportunity to do better business," said Terrie G. Spiro, regional president of First Horizon Bank. "By saving time and money, this product allows businesses to work more efficiently and is yet another extension of our value proposition to provide All Things Financial to our commercial customers in the Mid-Atlantic region."
First Horizon clients say the technology helps increase their efficiency, ultimately improving their overall business goals.
Avitecture, Inc. (AVWashington) provides audiovisual systems to federal and state governments, educational institutions and businesses. It has been using the technology for seven months. "The First Deposit Plus system increases our bottom line by saving us hard dollars and a trip to the bank," said Al Doland, Avitecture's chief financial officer. "The technology is easy to use, easy to install and is compatible. It fits our B2B business model perfectly." Optimos, a provider of state-of-the-art information technology solutions to the public sector and Fortune 500 firms, is located in the Northern Virginia technology corridor and has been operating for more than a decade. Tarun Saxena, controller of Optimos, says his company has been using First Deposit Plus for one year. "The technology we purchased from First Horizon enables transactions to occur faster, therefore increasing efficiency within the company. It saves us time and money, and we will continue to use the product because saving time is such a value," he said.
First Horizon provides the hardware that enables business customers of any size to capture check images, and then, via secure encryption software, transmit the scanned images to First Horizon. From those images, a duplicate of the original check is created and the transaction is completed simultaneously. Businesses can choose to process their payments once a day or many times throughout the day.
To use the system, a business simply needs a personal computer with an Internet connection. First Horizon will provide the check scanner, which can be leased or purchased, along with the secure software. The scanner is connected to the computer's USB port, and the automatic set-up of the software takes less than five minutes. Images of the scanned checks can be stored at the business, and access is available to multiple users with separate passwords.
The 2004 passage of the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act, or Check 21, laid the groundwork for this innovative service. The legislation provides for a new document type called an Image Replacement Document (IRD), which, with proper endorsement, is a legal image of an original check.
First Horizon offers a unique approach to banking by offering All Things Financial to consumers, small businesses and corporate clients, including:
-- Commercial lending -- Treasury management -- Commercial real estate and home loans -- Private banking -- Insurance and investments -- Financial planning -- Trust services -- Merchant card services -- Retail banking with extended hours of operation -- Check imaging service for businesses
About First Horizon
The 13,000 employees of First Horizon National Corp. (NYSE:FHN) provide financial services to individuals and business customers through hundreds of offices located in more than 40 states. The corporation's three major brands -- FTN Financial, First Horizon and First Tennessee -- provide customers with a broad range of products and services including:
-- Capital markets, one of the nation's top underwriters of U.S.
government agency securities
-- Mortgage banking, one of the nation's top 20 mortgage originators
and top 15 servicers, which earned a top-10 ranking in customer
satisfaction from J.D. Power and Associates
-- Retail/commercial banking, with the largest market share in
Tennessee and one of the highest customer retention rates of any
bank in the country
FHN companies have been recognized as some of the nation's best employers by AARP, Working Mother and Fortune magazines. FHN also was named one of the nation's 100 best corporate citizens by Business Ethics magazine. More information can be found at www.fhnc.com.