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Fuel-oil marketers streamline back office and improve cash flow with Cool Deposit


Henry Oil Co. in Providence, R.I., and Exeter Fuel in Exeter, R.I., are two fuel oil companies that have taken the process of making a deposit into the 21st century. They have done this by signing up with Independence Bank’s new proprietary product, Cool Deposit. Cool Deposit consists of a software package combined with a small desktop check scanner that enables businesses to create and make their deposits right from their desk.

One of Independence Bank’s target markets for Cool Deposit is oil companies, especially in the Northeast. According to John Charette, vice president of business technology, ‘It just makes sense. Deliveries are being made all day long and whether the driver is picking up a check or the customer mails it, most payments are made by checks. The faster that check can get into your account, the faster you’ll earn money on it.”

When asked about his experiences with Cool Deposit, Carmine DiSanto, president of Henry Oil in Providence, said, ‘The software reads the check, fills out the deposit ticket, totals my deposit and sends it to the bank. This frees me from the mundane tasks of writing out the deposit ticket, adding it up, and then making sure I get to the bank by three o’clock to make my deposit. On top of that, my funds are available the next day, which has helped my cash flow. In this era of rising oil prices, this improved cash flow is very important to me.”

Rose Besson, vice president of Exeter Fuel in Exeter, Rhode Island, had a similar response: ‘By taking this necessary but time-consuming task, and condensing it into minutes rather than hours, I have really been able to concentrate on other aspects of running a successful business. Combining the efficiencies gained in the office with the next-day funds availability has allowed Exeter Fuel to remain competitive in this very difficult market.”

Independence Bank has structured the Cool Deposit product so that it will actually pay for itself. The bank works with each customer to personalize an account structure. This structure is used to earn interest for the business on previously unavailable funds. Combine that with the low-cost financing provided by the bank and the product is paid for and all the benefits are realized in the very first month.

‘The financial impact that this product can make on a business is powerful”, Charette said. ‘To introduce a product that can make an immediate positive impact on a business’ bottom line is unheard of, but that’s what happens with Cool Deposit, and everybody wins. On top of that, Independence Bank will show businesses how to earn interest on their checking accounts.”

Imagine a one branch, FDIC-insured community bank in East Greenwich, R.I., challenging qualified businesses to accept monthly payments from the bank. That’s right. Independence Bank will pay up to 4 percent on business operating accounts if the average balance is over $100,000 and checking deposit transactions exceed 1,000 per month.

Welcome to Thomas L. Freidman’s ‘The World is Flat” proclamation that the playing field is level because new applied technology will change the way business is conducted, as well as change the players.

Robert S. Catanzaro, chairman and CEO of Independence Bank, believes that the banking industry will be unrecognizable within five years and he has launched a branded technology (Cool Deposit) that enables businesses who are paid by check to make deposits without leaving their offices.

‘Cool Deposit”, said Catanzaro, ‘is the smarter, better, faster and cheaper way to bank. It’s smarter because Cool Deposit makes you money. It’s better because Cool Deposit increases productivity. It’s faster because Cool Deposit is digitized. And it’s cheaper because Cool Deposit saves processing time and transaction costs.”


Independence Bank is located at 1370 South County Trail, in East Greenwich, R.I. It can be reached at (401) 886-4600, or by visiting the Web sites www.cooldeposit.com or www.independence-bank.com



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