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Viisage Posts Loss on Lower Revenue Data Center Chief Planning for Growth Raymond James Using SunGard Tools
Viisage Posts Loss on Lower Revenue
Viisage Technology Inc., a Billerica, Mass., company that sells document verification systems to banks and government agencies, said it lost less money in the fourth quarter than it did a year earlier.
Last week, Viisage reported a net loss of $3 million, or 14 cents a share, compared with a loss of $5.2 million, or 28 cents a share, in the fourth quarter of 2004. Revenue fell 21%, to $15 million.
The vendor's full-year loss widened 5.7%, to $7.4 million, or 38 cents a share. Revenue fell 2%, to $66.2 million.
Viisage says it wants more banking companies to start using its document reader, which government agencies use to verify the authenticity of driver's licenses and passports.
ABN Amro Holding NV started using the equipment in June after testing it for two and a half years. The Amsterdam company uses the reader to prevent fraud by checking documents in front of customers.
A driver's license is "like a deli sandwich - it's made up of many different layers," said Ron van Os, the chief product officer for Viisage. Its software can examine each layer to determine if it a license is counterfeit.
The reader can spot counterfeit cards even if they were made with the same materials used in legitimate ones, and it can verify whether expired cards were issued legitimately, he said. "We carry many different iterations of any particular document."
Data Center Chief Planning for Growth
The head of the Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center says he wants to broaden its membership and expand its mission to keep the industry operating in emergencies.
William B. Nelson, who was named the center's executive director last month, said in an interview last week that he wants to develop a strategic plan to increase its membership, improve the functionality of its online portal, and expand its educational services to members over the next three to five years.
"It reminded me a lot of where Nacha was maybe 20 years ago," said Mr. Nelson, who worked at the electronic payments association from 1988 until January, most recently an executive vice president.
The center was organized in 1999 to guard financial companies' computer networks against online fraud or cyberattack. Its mission was broadened after the Sept. 11 attacks to encompass physical security and again after Hurricane Katrina to include natural disasters, Mr. Nelson said.
Today, 1,830 financial companies are members of the center, versus 800 at the end of 2004 and 60 at the end of 2003, he said. It is supported by the Treasury Department and other regulators.
The center operates an alert service and offers networking for members to share information and ideas, Mr. Nelson said. "When something goes wrong - a physical attack, natural disaster, or cyberattack - that's not the time to exchange business cards."
The center also coordinates with local groups, such as the disaster-recovery cooperative ChicagoFirst, but its emphasis is on national issues, he said.
Raymond James Using SunGard Tools
Raymond James Financial Inc. of St. Petersburg, Fla., has agreed to use two analytical products from SunGard Data Systems Inc. of Wayne, Pa.
SunGard said in a press release Monday that Raymond James will use PlanningStation, a financial modeling product that provides analysis and presentations for clients, as well as AllocationMaster, which advisers use for wealthy individuals' portfolios.
"PlanningStation offers a good balance … for financial advisors," John Catalano, the manager of financial planning software for Raymond James, said in a SunGard press release. Raymond James will provide the software to its 4,800 advisers, who serve 1.2 million customers.
