By Marc Rapport, originally published by Credit Union Times, December 20, 2010

As Check 21 wraps up its first decade, its impact has been considerable, to the point where the Federal Reserve has but one site left for processing [paper] checks…

The Check Clearing Act for the 21st Century “Check 21″ was passed by Congress in October 2003 and took effect a year later.

Then in 2010, remote-deposit capture went mobile, as vendors and financial institutions that saw a market for it hastened to get the service onto BlackBerry, Android and iPhone platforms, further extending to consumers the conveniences that had been reserved for the enterprise itself.

“The cost of handling paper checks is getting so much lower than it used to be that I think we may see a renaissance in their use and in checking accounts,” [Bluepoint CEO Hal] Tilbury said. “They’re also easier to secure against fraud than a debit card.”

“I see equal lines forming to get mobile and home capture solutions and I see teller capture taking over a lot of the back-office work associated with branch capture, but I don’t see checks going away anytime soon.”

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–Credit union expands relationship with technology partner, Bluepoint Solutions, to enhance its mobile banking application with mobile remote deposit capture–

LAS VEGAS, Oct. 19, 2010 Mountain America Credit Union announced today during the BAI Retail Delivery 2010 event, it has added mobile remote deposit capture capabilities to its mobile banking platform, enabling members to securely deposit checks with a camera-equipped smart phone, providing the added convenience of anytime, anywhere deposits. The credit union has teamed with technology partner, Bluepoint Solutions, to launch the service.

“We recognize how important the mobile channel is to our members,” said Tony Rasmussen

SVP eServices, eServices for Mountain America Credit Union. “Most consumers today have around-the-clock access to a mobile device, and are managing much of their daily life from some sort of handheld device. We launched our first mobile banking application roughly six years ago and the interest in this channel has increased exponentially in the last two years. Currently, we have more than 30,000 members using our mobile banking application. Our members view mobile capture as a necessity, therefore it was the next logical step for our overall mobile banking strategy.”

Mountain America’s members can now deposit checks from a smart phone by keying in the deposit amount and then — using the phone’s camera — take photos of the front and back of the check. The application then automatically performs multiple quality assurance and image correction functions to minimize image distortions, such as skewing or exposure inconsistencies, and ensure the images meet Check 21 and mobile image-quality standards. All transactions are transmitted with multiple layers of security and, if necessary, can be traced back to registered smart phones, marked with time and location, to combat fraud.

Mountain America selected Bluepoint Solutions’ QwikDeposit ToGo, which leverages Mitek Systems Inc. Mobile Deposit® software application. The platform has quickly become known within the financial services industry as the “Gold Standard” in image processing because of its unmatched ease of use, security, quality and accuracy.

Rasmussen added, “For our credit union, adding mobile capture was never a question of if we would do it, but rather, when and with which technology partner. In today’s market, it is critical to partner with companies that demonstrate stability, flexibility, as well as an ongoing commitment to innovation and modern technology. Our prior, experience with Bluepoint, combined with the due diligence we performed during the research phase of this process, confirmed they exemplify the qualities we seek in a partner.”

Once Mountain America completes its upgrade and install of mobile capture, it will accept check images from multiple capture points, including mobile, a member’s home or business, and at the teller line. Using the newest version of Bluepoint Solutions’ ImagePoint Hub, the credit union will have the ability to view any check image, at any point during the day, from any location “in real time” regardless of the check’s capture point.  This will allow them to manage multiple capture points from a central application and run fraud checks against the items no matter the deposit channel.  Once items are checked for duplicates, CAR / LAR verification and MICR line correction are completed and then the cash-letter is created for forward presentment. Bluepoint’s ImagePoint Hub provide a cost-effective, centralized check-processing platform that yields savings in time and money, as well as produces a streamlined workflow.

“Mobile capture gives credit unions the ability to offer members deposit capability from any location, at any time during the day, especially when combined with other capture points,” said Hal Tilbury, CEO and founder of Bluepoint Solutions. “The exponential increase in the usage of smart phones and robust mobile banking applications illustrates a fundamental shift in how consumers prefer to conduct their financial transactions.  For financial institutions who are looking to differentiate themselves in a crowded marketplace, the question is not should we implement mobile capture, but rather how quickly can we can get this service into the hands of our members.”

Mountain America Credit Union has 63 branches in four states, serves more than 343,000 members and has more than 2.8 billion in assets. Bluepoint Solutions is a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner and innovator in remote deposit capture (RDC), image-based item processing and enterprise content management software technology for financial institutions.

–Industry leaders join forces to introduce robust mobile platform to community financial institutions–

VISTA, Calif. Sept. 16, 2010 Bluepoint Solutions, a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner and innovator in remote deposit capture (RDC), image-based item processing and enterprise content management (ECM) software technology for financial institutions, and Access Softek, a provider of home banking solutions for financial institutions, have partnered to offer community financial institutions a complete mobile banking application that seamlessly integrates mobile remote deposit capture capabilities. The integration of mobile banking and mobile remote deposit capture into a single application provides a more robust and user-friendly experience for the end-user.

Bluepoint’s mobile RDC platform, QwikDeposit To Go powered by Mitek Systems’ patented IMagePROVE technology, is now available as an integrated component of Access Softek’s proven Mobile Finance Manager, a downloadable online banking program that resides directly on a user’s smart phone. The integrated solution provides financial institutions with a sophisticated, complete mobile application that enables account holders to perform traditional banking services, as well as deposit checks, all from a single application on their mobile device.

“There is no denying the consumer demand for mobile banking services,” said Chris Doner, CEO of Access Softek. “The explosive growth of smart phones makes mobile remote deposit capture the next logical step for banks looking to offer a complete mobile application to account holders. Mobile banking users are primarily motivated by convenience. When an institution offers mobile deposit, it offers the most convenient deposit solution for its customers.  This will inevitably result in getting a higher amount of deposits relative to institutions that do not offer mobile deposit. We have partnered with Bluepoint to extend our mobile banking application by integrating their best-of-breed mobile deposit technology. We are pleased to offer financial institutions a sophisticated mobile application that, until now, has been out-of-reach for most smaller institutions.”

Integrating mobile capture directly within a mobile banking application creates a more user-friendly experience, by allowing the accountholder to manage almost every banking function from the convenience of a mobile device. Industry analysts anticipate a high adoption rate for mobile remote deposit capture solutions, especially among current users of mobile banking applications. Juniper Research anticipates the number of people accessing banking services via mobile phones is set to increase to 816 million by 2011, a 10-fold increase since 2007. According to research conducted by research firm Mercatus, 59 percent of today’s mobile banking customers are likely to adopt mobile remote deposit capture if the technology is offered by their financial institution.

“Bluepoint has always been focused on bringing innovative technology solutions to financial institutions,” said Hal Tilbury, founder and CEO of Bluepoint Solutions. “Our most recent mobile RDC launch was met by incredible enthusiasm by small to mid-size institutions that understand that this technology will be important to current and future accountholders. We are looking forward to working with Access Softek to take this one step further, and launch one of the industry’s first complete mobile banking with check capture applications.”

“ Mobile deposit capabilities allow quick, convenient, secure transfer of funds”

VISTA, Calif. July 8, 2010 Bluepoint Solutions, a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner and innovator in remote deposit capture (RDC), image-based item processing and enterprise content management software technology for financial institutions, announced the release of QwikDeposit To Go, a sophisticated mobile remote deposit capture application. Powered by Mitek Systems patented IMagePROVE technology, Bluepoint Solutions QwikDeposit Mobile Capture application completes Bluepoint’s existing suite of Check 21 capture points.

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“When implemented alongside our existing branch, teller, ATM, merchant and home capture applications, QwikDeposit To Go is an opportunity for institutions to provide a valuable service for account holders, while at the same time drive out operational and processing costs, as well as add efficiencies in the check processing timeline,” said Hal Tilbury, chief executive officer and founder of Bluepoint Solutions. “The fusion of Mitek’s advanced image quality technology with Bluepoint’s proven remote deposit capture and item processing aggregation engine provides institutions with a sophisticated and reliable mobile capture application. Having the ability to deposit checks at any time of day, regardless of location is a service that is extremely valuable to consumers.”

“The dramatic increase in the use of smart phones, combined with consumer demand for mobile banking applications has created a perfect storm for mobile capture,” adds Tilbury. “The emergence of mobile capture  is a direct reflection of a larger shift in how people interact with their financial institutions remotely, 24 hours a day, on their schedule, and on the go.  Financial institutions of any size must react to these trends to remain competitive.  QwikDeposit To Go is a tool designed to help institutions do just that and as a result grow existing accounts and attract new customers or members.”

In a recent Mercatus Mobile RDC Adoption Research Study, Managing Partner, Bob Hedges, stated, “We expect consumers to significantly embrace mobile remote deposit capture and it will be the ‘killer app.’ With consumers placing a premium on convenience, mobile RDC has the potential to significantly change retail banking’s business model by providing a way for people to do basic banking without branches.”

Bluepoint’s QwikDeposit To Go enables consumers to securely deposit checks with a camera-equipped smart phone, providing quicker availability of funds and added convenience. Account holders initiate mobile-banking sessions, key in their deposit amount and simply snap photos of both the front and back of the check with their smart phone cameras. The software captures the check, formats the image, automatically corrects any image distortions or skewing and confirms the images meet Check 21 and mobile image-quality standards. All transactions are transmitted with multiple layers of security and, if necessary, can be traced back to registered smart phones, marked with time and location, in order to combat fraud.

QwikDeposit To Go relies on a patent-pending software application from Mitek Systems Inc. (OTC: MITK.OB; www.miteksystems.com), called Mobile Deposit®, which is being embraced widely by technology applications providers like Bluepoint Solutions and financial services institutions of all sizes for its ease of use, security and the industry leading quality and accuracy of its image processing.

Mobile Deposit complies with all industry standards ”including Check 21″and was developed specifically to help banking institutions take advantage of the growing consumer acceptance of smart phone applications for the mobile Web, including mobile RDC, with the utmost security for every transaction.

“We think of Mobile Deposit as the ‘Gold Standard’in mobile RDC because of the acceptance of our application by all the major integrators and ASPs that cater to financial institutions,” said Mitek CEO James DeBello. “We’re very pleased that our partnership with Bluepoint Solutions further validates that trend.”

Bluepoint Solutions gives institutions the option of selecting a full licensed version of QwikDeposit To Go or they can take advantage of Bluepoint’s unique monthly use-fee delivery model. Additionally, institutions have the option to operate QwikDeposit To Go within Bluepoint’s SAS70-certified data center, enabling small to mid-size institutions to compete with much larger, nation-wide banks without making a large financial investment. Also included with the solution from Bluepoint is a proprietary online Marketing Center that provides institutions immediate access to a repository of professional-quality marketing collateral including statement stuffers, email campaigns and a variety of signage to build awareness and promote the new mobile deposit offering to the community.

“Mobile RDC allows smaller institutions to compete with larger, nationwide banks,” said Tilbury. “By bringing down the cost of mobile capture technology and making it easy for our customers to deploy, we are empowering the small-to-medium banks and credit unions we work with to better retain account holders and attract new ones. There is a lot of demand for this technology among the small to mid-size institutions and we look forward to making it available to our customers.”