ATLANTA, Aug. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CheckFree (Nasdaq: CKFR)
today announced a multi-year renewal agreement with KeyBank, one of the
nation's largest banks, to be the bank's primary electronic bill payment
provider. KeyBank has provided a secure electronic bill payment service
since 1999. The agreement includes a significant joint investment in
consumer education on the benefits of electronic bill payment services,
from timesavings to financial control and more.
"More customers are recognizing the many benefits of electronic bill
payment services," said Paul Graning, senior vice president, National
Channel Management at Cleveland, OH-based KeyBank. "Working with CheckFree,
the industry leader, has helped us develop a loyal, growing base of online
users, and also enabled us to provide the highest-quality service
available. We look forward to teaming with them on our new educational
programs that promote the value of paying bills online."
By using a consolidated banking site, customers are able to manage and
organize their finances in one convenient location. Consolidated site users
benefit from the service's convenience, ease of use and improved control
over payment timing.
"CheckFree is committed to offering the highest-quality electronic
billing and payment technology services to its consumer service provider
(CSP) partners such as KeyBank," said Jeff Weikert, senior vice president
of the CSP business unit in CheckFree's Electronic Commerce Division.
"CheckFree will devote significant resources to educating the bank's
customers about the benefits of electronic billing and payment as the bank
expands its technologically savvy user base."
Available at http://www.Key.com, the KeyBank online banking service offers
many valuable features:
* 18 months of account history
* Pay anyone bill payment service
* Email alerts
* Online check images
* Funds transfer between Key accounts and accounts at other banks
* Online statements
* State-of-the-art security
Electronic billing and payment are increasingly replacing mailed paper
checks for paying bills. According to a 2006 survey by The Marketing
Workshop, Inc. and Harris Interactive, sponsored by CheckFree, 69 percent
of U.S. online households say they are paying at least one bill online, up
from 56 percent in March 2005. Additionally, new research suggests that
online transactions are a highly secure payment method. According to a 2006
survey by Javelin Strategy & Research, identity fraud is higher offline
than via the Web. The report recommends replacing paper bills, statements
and checks with online versions, and monitoring accounts weekly through
online banking sites.
According to the CheckFree-sponsored survey conducted by The Marketing
Workshop, Inc. and Harris Interactive, consumers say the top reasons they
pay bills online are:
1) Convenience - Consumers who receive and pay monthly bills at a
financial institution's website, only need to enter billing information one
time. They eliminate the paper, stamps and hassle involved in mailing paper
checks.
2) Control - Paying bills online ensures they are paid on time, as
scheduled, reducing the chances of a missed payment or incurring late fees.
3) Ease of use - Consumers can pay bills when they want, where they
want, at home or on the road.
4) Speed - Eighty percent of electronic payments handled by CheckFree
are processed by the next business day, making paying bills online faster
than sending a paper check.
5) Security - CheckFree's industry-leading electronic billing and
payment services are safe and reliable.
6) Help the Environment - By receiving and paying bills online,
consumers reduce the demand for paper. An average American household sends
or receives 20 bills, statements or checks each month, which adds up to
771,000 tons of paper nationwide. By receiving and paying bills online, the
U.S. alone could help save 18.5 million trees each year, according to a
report by Javelin Strategy & Research.
About KeyCorp
Cleveland-based KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) is one of the nation's largest
bank- based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $95
billion. Key companies provide investment management, retail and commercial
banking, consumer finance, and investment banking products and services to
individuals and companies throughout the United States and, for certain
businesses, internationally.
About CheckFree (http://www.checkfreecorp.com)
Founded in 1981, CheckFree Corporation (Nasdaq: CKFR) provides
financial electronic commerce services and products to organizations around
the world. CheckFree Electronic Commerce solutions enable thousands of
financial services providers and billers to offer their customers the
convenience of receiving and paying their household bills online or in
person through retail outlets. CheckFree Investment Services provides a
broad range of investment management solutions and outsourced services to
thousands of financial services organizations, which manage about $1.4
trillion in assets. CheckFree Software develops, markets and supports
software applications that are used by financial institutions to process
more than two-thirds of the nearly 14 billion Automated Clearing House
transactions in the United States. The division also provides operational
risk management, financial messaging, corporate actions, and regulatory
compliance software to more than 1,500 organizations across the globe.
Certain of CheckFree's statements in this press release are not purely
historical, and as such are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These include
statements regarding management's intentions, plans, beliefs, expectations
or projections of the future. Forward-looking statements involve risks and
uncertainties, including without limitation, the various risks inherent in
CheckFree's business, and other risks and uncertainties detailed from time
to time in CheckFree's periodic reports filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission, including CheckFree's Annual Report on Form 10-K for
the year ended June 30, 2005 (filed September 2, 2005), Form 10-Q for the
quarter ended September 30, 2005 (filed November 8, 2005), Form 10-Q for
the quarter ended December 31, 2005 (filed February 8, 2006), and Form 10-Q
for the quarter ended March 31, 2006 (filed May 9, 2006). One or more of
these factors have affected, and could in the future affect CheckFree's
business and financial results in future periods, and could cause actual
results to differ materially from plans and projections. There can be no
assurance that the forward-looking statements made in this press release
will prove to be accurate, and issuance of such forward-looking statements
should not be regarded as a representation by CheckFree, or any other
person, that the objectives and plans of CheckFree will be achieved. All
forward-looking statements made in this press release are based on
information presently available to management, and CheckFree assumes no
obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
SOURCE CheckFree Corporation
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Related links:
http://www.checkfreecorp.com
http://www.Key.com
CONTACT:
Media relations, Judy DeRango Wicks,
+1-678-375-1595, or jdwicks@checkfree.com, or Investor relations,
Tina Moore, +1-678-375-1278, or tmoore@checkfree.com, both of
CheckFree Corporation
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