IRVINE, Calif. -- American Savings Bank last week announced the official launch of Consumer Direct, a seven-day telephone banking service that is built around the loan function.
By calling 800-LOAN-ASB, customers can get information on loan programs and rates, initiate an application, and be referred to a loan consultant in a nearby office.
The service is available 11 hours each weekday and for shorter periods on weekends. It is going statewide after being introduced last month in Modesto, Stockton, and Sacramento.
By 1994, the entire loan process will be able to be completed by telephone.
The $17 billion-asset thrift, an active mortgage lender and refinancer, is only the latest to see the telephone as an extension of branches.
The service name evokes previous entries in branchless banking such as Midland Bank of London's First Direct and Huntington Bancshares of Ohio's Huntington Direct.
American Savings appointed Jennifer Myhre managing editor of Consumer Direct. She is based at headquarters in Stockton.
