Intuit Quickens Pace Into Financial Services

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – On the heels of a $1.3 billion deal for Internet services provider Digital Insight, financial software giant Intuit Inc., announced Friday it is acquiring Electronic Clearing House Inc., a check and card processor credit unions, banks and retailers, for $142 million. The latest deal will allow Intuit to offer more payment services to small business, a market it targeted with the acquisition for Digital Insight. Electronic Clearing House, known as ECHO, is based in Camarillo, Calif., and is one of a dozen commercial entities vying in the market for electronic payments. Intuit announced an agreement on Nov. 30 to acquire Digital Insight, which provides Internet banking services for more than 1,500 financial institutions, half of which are credit unions.