Wealth management company Edward Jones selected Citibank on Aug. 15 to provide bank accounts to its more than 8 million clients. 

The St. Louis-based company will also integrate Citi Alliance, the bank’s lending service, into its platform to provide loans to its customers, according to an Edward Jones release. 

“Citi has an industry-leading lineup of consumer banking products, with considerable expertise in retail and consumer banking at scale,” an Edward Jones spokesperson told Bank Automation News. “The integration of banking capabilities with Edward Jones’ best-in-class investment services will enable our financial advisers to work with clients based on a more holistic view of their finances and provide more value in helping them achieve their goals.” 

The $1.7 trillion wealth management platform decided in October 2022 to pursue strategies, including a bank partnership, to meet clients’ saving, spending and borrowing needs, the spokesperson said. 

Edward Jones has been using AI to create efficiency and improve the client and branch team experience, the spokesperson added.  

“As the technology is evolving rapidly, we see responsible use of new evolutions as a tremendous opportunity for the firm,” the spokesperson said.  

AI will add to Edward Jones’ emphasis on personal relationships, not replace it, the spokesperson added. 

Liberty Bank picks Treasury Prime to build fintech customers

Liberty Bank is working with BaaS provider Treasury Prime to reach fintechs and startups within Treasury Prime’s ecosystem. 

The Irvine, Cali-based bank aims to provide embedded banking solutions to fintech customers in the California region, according to a Liberty Bank release issued Monday.  

Under the arrangement, $550 million bank will be able to provide such services as deposit accounts, ACH and wire services to Treasury Prime clients.  

“The partnership will allow us an entree into a new line of business — financial technology partners,” Don M. Griffith, chairman and chief executive of Liberty Bank N.A., told BAN. “We hope to attract the deposits of those companies that will generate additional interest and fee income for the bank.” 

Liberty Bank picked Treasury Prime because it is “the most established player in the space,” and Liberty Bank “received excellent references from other banks that do business with them,” Griffith said. 

“Treasury Prime has indeed witnessed a notable uptick in interest from small and regional banks eager to forge collaborations with fintechs and companies and delve into the realm of embedded finance,” Jeff Nowicki, vice president of banking at Treasury Prime, told BAN. “The impetus behind this shift can be attributed to the escalating expenses associated with conventional methods of attracting and retaining deposits.” 

Banks are actively “exploring more economically efficient avenues for deposit acquisition,” and “by strategically aligning with embedded finance entities, these banks not only gain access to untapped market segments but also secure a more sustainable and cost-effective deposit source,” Nowicki said. 

Valley Bank teams with True Digital 

Valley Bank is working with digital banking marketplace True Digital to fill technology voids in its system and upgrade its tech stack. 

“What we are trying to do is really build a network of banks and to help that network identify commonalities and identify real efficiency blocks,” Stuart Cook, chief innovation officer at Valley Bank, told BAN.  

Valley Bank will provide membership to 100 community banks for True Digital marketplace platform so that they can connect with different vendors and fill gaps in their tech stack, Cook said.  

“When you’re trying to do anything in innovation or technology inside of a bank, because there are so many other vendors, it’s like a jigsaw puzzle,” Patrick Sells, co-founder of True Digital, told BAN. “But I’m kind of doing a jigsaw puzzle in the dark and it’s being able to then find other bankers who have done different pieces and have the same parts of the puzzles.” 

True Digital has more than 1,000 vendors and over 320 financial institutions on its platform, including Texas Banker Association, a consortium of 380 community banks in Texas, Sells said.  

Peoples Bank taps Corserv for credit card offering

Peoples Bank has selected Corserv, which provides banks and fintechs with payment programs and implements a credit card program serving commercial, small business and nonprofit customers. 

The $8.8 billion Marietta, Ohio-based bank selected Corserv because it enables it “to offer credit cards, participate in the credit decision, have access to cardholder and program data, and improve customer service without adding staff or credit card expertise,” a People’s Bank spokesperson told BAN. 

Fermont Bank, Machias Savings Bank and BayCoast Bank are among institutions using Corserv’s credit card offerings, according to the company’s website.  

“Historically, our credit card program has seen 80% of the purchase volume come from the bank’s local businesses, municipalities and non-profits using the credit cards,” a Corserv spokesperson told BAN.