NORTH CANTON, Ohio — Fortis, a European financial group for insurance and banking, has signed an agreement with Ohio-based Diebold Inc. (NYSE: DBD) to manage a deposit automation project in Belgium and The Netherlands, according to a news release.
Although local-market needs in the two countries vary, Diebold's deposit automation solutions will enable Fortis to meet its goal to migrate traditional cash-deposit functions directly into self-service terminals, the release noted. Diebold's system allows bulk-cash deposits to be credited in real time.
In The Netherlands, Diebold installed more than 160 Opteva cash dispensers and advanced-function ATMs, the release added. Half of those systems include modules for deposit automation. The supported functions include cash-in, cash-out, account information and money transfers from savings to current accounts.
In Belgium, Diebold installed a pilot of its Cumulus units, the release stated. Cumulus is a custom-built solution that enables Fortis to pick and choose options that best meet the needs of its branches and customers.
According to the release, Cumulus units combine cash-deposit and recycling features and are fully compliant with the European Central Bank's Article 6, which requires the accurate detection, handling and retracing of counterfeit notes and the separation of suspect from genuine notes, as well as fit from unfit notes.
Fortis Bank Belgium has activated the deposit mode of its new machines, allowing cash to be immediately reused by a branch teller or in other cash terminals within the branch without being sent back for validation at the bank's central cash center, the release noted.
"We responded to the bank's individual market needs by creating solutions that would help meet its business goals while meeting its customers' needs," said Henrik Funch, division vice president of Diebold EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa).
The Fortis/Diebold partnership also includes other projects such as a noncash platform roll out and upgrades to Europay/Mastercard/Visa and Triple DES in both countries.
