ATLANTA, Jan. 8, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Midwest Bank and Trust Company recently licensed Harland Financial Solutions' Encore!(r) Sales & Service(tm) to facilitate its aggressive growth initiatives. Harland Financial Solutions, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of John H. Harland Company (NYSE:JH).
Midwest Bank and Trust Company, which is headquartered in Chicago and has $2.3 billion in assets, will use Encore!'s customer relationship information, sales and referral tracking, and enhanced account-opening efficiencies. Using Encore! in conjunction with Harland Financial Solutions' Touche(r) Analyzer(tm) MCIF, the bank is striving to better understand product and relationship profitability, improve cross-selling, provide more personalized service to its customers, and execute integrated multi-channel marketing campaigns.
Midwest Bank and Trust Company expects the enhanced sales, service, and customer insights to play an integral role in supporting its growth objectives. Currently serving the north and northwestern suburbs of Chicago with 24 branches, the bank intends to expand to a "super community" model through acquisition, serving the entire Chicago metropolitan area. The bank's first acquisition, Royal American Bank, was a private client bank with six locations. "We expect Encore! to help us understand these relationships so we can maintain and improve on the service delivery expectations," said Dennis Motyka, executive vice president of Midwest Bank and Trust Company's retail banking division.
Motyka expects to leverage the bank's well dispersed, locally owned "super community" advantage and quality staff throughout Midwest Bank and Trust Company's entire branch network to overcome competition in the area.
"In order for our vision to be executed and to win over our competition, we need well-trained, knowledgeable bankers," he said. "Encore! provides the tools we need to empower our employees with knowledge and improved operational efficiency."
Tom Richards, executive vice president and general manager of Harland Financial Solutions' Retail Solutions Group, said, "We are proud to expand our relationship with Midwest Bank and Trust Company and support the institution's growth initiatives by tracking its continued progress."
In addition to Encore! Sales & Service and Touche Analyzer, Midwest Bank and Trust Company also uses EZTeller(r) and LaserPro(r) from Harland Financial Solutions.
About Harland Financial Solutions
Harland Financial Solutions (www.harlandfinancialsolutions.com) supplies software and services to thousands of financial institutions of all sizes, offering its solutions in both an in-house and service bureau environment. The company is a leader in core systems, item processing, enterprise content management, branch automation, customer relationship management, business intelligence, origination and document solutions, risk management, compliance training, financial accounting, open documents, mortgage solutions, electronic funds transfer (EFT), self service solutions and performance advisory services.
About Harland
Atlanta-based John H. Harland Company (NYSE:JH) (www.harland.net) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "JH." Harland is a leading provider of software and printed products to the financial institution market. Harland's software solutions include deposit & loan origination, platform, teller, call-center, mortgage, business intelligence, core systems and customer relationship management systems. Harland's printed products offerings include checks, direct marketing and financial forms. Scantron Corporation (www.scantron.com), a wholly owned subsidiary, is a leading provider of software services and systems for the collection, management and interpretation of data to the financial, commercial and educational markets.
About Midwest Bank
Midwest Banc Holdings, Inc. is a community-based bank holding company. The Company provides a wide range of services, including traditional banking services, personal and corporate trust services, residential mortgage services, insurance brokerage and retail securities brokerage services throughout the greater Chicago metropolitan area.
The Company's principal operating subsidiaries are: Midwest Bank and Trust Company, Midwest Financial and Investment Services, Inc., and Midwest Bank Insurance Services.
This press release contains statements, which may constitute "forward-looking statements." These statements include statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of John H. Harland Company and members of its respective management, as well as the assumptions on which such statements are based. Prospective investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties and that actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements. Reference is made to the Risk Factors and Cautionary Statements in Harland's Form 10-K and Form 10-Q filed under the Securities Exchange Act.