Like any other start-up, Summit Bank in Eugene, Ore., wanted to make a name for itself quickly.
It did, by being the first bank - of any size - in its market to offer remote deposit services to its business customers.
A year after its 2004 opening, Summit launched remote deposit to attract small businesses, particularly professional services such as law firms, architects, accounting and marketing firms, which are readily adopting the new technology.
Ann Marie Mehlum, Summit's president and chief executive, said it was "committed to using the best technology we could early on, because we knew our target audience would want it." Summit also rolled out online banking and cash management services last year.
Summit's assets have nearly doubled, to $65 million, since adding these services, and it is making money - it turned a $65,000 profit in the first quarter, after reporting a loss of $81,000 for last year's first quarter.
Industry watchers expect remote deposit to become popular in banking as businesses' demand for it grows.
The service lets businesses convert checks into digital images and make deposits by transmitting the files to the bank; that expedites the process considerably and eliminates trips to the bank.
Summit "is definitely on the leading edge of the curve, as remote deposit is now something the majority of banks are starting to look at," said Richard A. Soukup, a partner with the Chicago accounting and consulting firm Grant Thornton LLP. Start-ups rarely use such technology, and it is a smart way for them to carve a niche for themselves, he said.
Big banks and other Oregon community banks, such as the $2.3 billion-asset West Coast Bancorp in Lake Oswego and the $7 billion-asset Umpqua Holdings Corp. in Portland, have since started offering remote deposit.
But Ms. Mehlum says Summit still has the advantage of having the most experience with the technology.
ACH Commerce LLC in Ooltewah, Tenn., coordinates its remote deposit services with Summit's data processing vendor. Using a vendor instead of building the technology in-house saved Summit a lot of money, Ms. Mehlum said, though she would not say how much.
Robert J. Rogowski, the managing director of corporate finance at McAdams Wright Ragen Inc. in Seattle, said that within 12 to 18 months practically all banks in the Pacific Northwest will offer remote deposit.
Summit's maintaining its edge will depend on how well it builds relationships with customers signing up for the service now - particularly those not close to its branches, Mr. Rogowski said.
Summit has only one branch, in downtown Eugene.
In the first quarter Summit's loans, most of which are commercial, nearly tripled, to $40.2 million.
Mr. Rogowski said Summit's ultimate success "boils down to the lending side of the balance sheet. Given the growth in Oregon, they should do fine in terms of loan growth, assuming they get quality loans."
