NORTH BAY BUSINESS JOURNAL EVENT

2008 Construction Conferrence

Building the North Bay: What's on the horizon?
Tuesday, May 20, 2008, 8-11:30 a.m., Hyatt Vineyard Creek, Santa Rosa

Women in Business 2008 Awards Dinner Gala

Thursday, June 26, 2008, Sheraton Sonoma County, Petaluma

E-Mail Express

Name:

Company:

E-mail:

Phone:

Marin bank-software startups land giant ClairMail, mFoundry to provide mobile technology to BB&T

NOVATO and SAUSALITO -- Two North Bay high-tech companies have partnered to provide one of the nation's largest online banks with the most advanced mobile banking solution yet deployed.

ClairMail of Novato and Sausalito's mFoundry combined their applications in a deal with BB&T that puts the financial holding company in the forefront of the bank-by-cellular-phone trend.

"We're certainly excited about being on the cutting edge of mobile phone banking technology and more importantly, what this means for our clients," said BB&T Online Channel Manager Paal Kaperda.

BB&T has $127.6 billion in assets and operates over 1,500 financial centers in 11 states.

It's the first large American customer announced by 60-employee, 3-year-old ClairMail. Earlier in the year ClairMail announced a strategic partnership with Canadian carrier Telus. The company will soon be announcing several more large American customers, according to John Aquino, director of marketing communications for ClairMail.

Three-year-old, 30-employee mFoundry has already established relationships with Verizon, Sprint and Citibank, among other carriers and financial institutions.

The partnership between the two combines ClairMail's platform, text messaging and mobile Web capabilities with mFoundry's Spotlight application, which resides on the handset itself after being downloaded by a customer.

"Providing all three user-interface types on one platform allows BB&T to offer the service to a broader range of customers," said mFoundry CEO Drew Sievers. "Different interfaces appeal to different segments of cell phone users."

ClairMail's technology, which does not require software installations, allows users of cell phones and other handheld devices to bypass interactive voice-response systems or call centers and directly access account information via text messaging.

It also enables two-way communication between the bank and the customer so banks can send out alerts or advertise services.

Combining it with mFoundry's easy-to-use, feature-rich interface technology offers the most comprehensive solution to date for carriers, banks and their customers.

"We hope it's the first of many such joint offerings," said Mr. Aquino.

"The synergy between our two companies is remarkable, and being so close geographically is a huge advantage."

The partnership saves banks the headache of using different vendors for different applications, he said.

"And it saves us from competing against each other," Mr. Aquino added.

Both companies are privately funded. The terms of the agreement with BB&T were not disclosed.

For more information, visit www.clairmail.com and www.mfoundry.com.

Book of Lists Online