Speaking to ComputerWire, a senior source at Blue Bell, Pennsylvania-based Unisys expressed an interest in Marlborough Stirling’s mortgage processing business, and refused to deny that the company might be bidding on all or part of the business.
A spokesperson for Cheltenham, UK-based Marlborough Stirling, said that the company is currently having discusssions with third parties, although he would not comment on the prospect of a tie-up with Unisys.
Marlborough Stirling put itself up for sale in December 2004, following a series of warnings about its business performance and the resignation of non-executive chairman Paul Fullagar. The company announced that it is considering either a joint venture or sale of all or parts of the business.
Marlborough Stirling has suffered financially over recent months. The company tumbled further into the red during its most recent half-year period ended June 30, 2004, reporting a net loss of 4.44m pounds ($8.55m) for the six-month period, compared to a loss of 3.26m pounds ($6.28m) in 2003, on revenue that fell 11% to 49.8m pounds ($95.9m).
Life and pensions software was particularly affected, with revenue down 26% at 30.7m pounds ($59.1m), although life and pensions outsourcing grew 7% to 23.6m pounds ($45.4m). Cash and cash equivalents fell 32% to 17.6m pounds ($33.9m), and consequently the company cut its workforce by 70, and closed down three loss-making operations.
Unisys and Marlborough Stirling have an existing business relationship in mortgage processing services for UK building society Bradford & Bingley. Through that deal, B&B signed five-year contracts with both Marlborough Stirling and Unisys to provide their Omiga and Unisys Financial Services Systems (UFSS) respectively to provide mortgage sales and administration processing. Marlborough Stirling’s Omiga straight-through-processing platform is used for pre-completion processing including credit card checking, payments, and underwriting services.
UFSS meanwhile, is being used to consolidate B&B’s existing mortgage business onto a single system. It will also host the new mortgage business. Unisys claims that the UFSS application has been implemented across five of the ten largest UK mortgage lenders.
Other potentially interested parties could also include CSC, Capita Group, IBM Global Services and Canadian services giant CGI Group Inc, all of which have strong interests in BPO for the insurance and financial services sector.
