Barclays Bank Plc and Pegasus Group Plc have announced a joint electronic banking service. The scheme, scheduled to launch in May, plans to integrate Barclays’ computer-based Business Master banking service with Pegasus’ Opera accounting software. Currently the only way to link personal computer accounting and electronic banking packages is to either to re-key, and therefore duplicate data, or use time consuming import-export facilities. This latest venture, code named Electronic Cash Book, aims to eliminate the need for most of the manual activities, said Barclays’ global head of product management Alan Verschoyle-King. Customers that use Opera and bank with Barclays will be able to seamlessly transfer data via a modem directly into the bank’s computer system. All transaction details can be held for a maximum of eight years – the system can only cope with up to 99 months, but if you’re loath to lose your data, it can be stored on back-up files. The actual services offered are not dramatically different. Foreign exchange rates and account details are updated four times each day, and statements will be available on a 24 hour basis electronically, viewed via a standard Windows-based environment. What is new about the Electronic Cash Book is its ability to reduce the time spent duplicating information and transfering data in the correct format to the bank. However, its still some way off from being a true on-line service. According to Pegasus chief executive Jonathan Hubbard-Ford, the security implications associated with any on-line or Internet-connected financial software have so far prevented the group from launching such a system – but it’s getting there he promised. Instead, transactions are performed off-line at each end, then sent electronically to the awaiting party. Ford argued the four updates per day were sufficient for most businesses that use the Opera software. Both Barclays and Pegasus think the announcement of the venture will stimulate interest from software vendors and banks alike.
