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New Mexico Business Journal,  August, 2000  by Kent Paterson

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The concept, explains Bank of America spokeswoman Linda Mueller, is to wire companies up to stations where virtually any transaction imaginable can be performed. Not only will e-commerce and financial services be available, but everything from travel services to intra-company communications as well. According to Mueller, B2E portals should be widely available in late 2000 and early 2001. "We have a natural place in the whole payment arena, so why not create a marketplace in a portal?" says Mueller.

At the moment Wells Fargo is vying with Bank of America for the No. 1 spot in on-line banking services nationwide. In addition to the regular services, Wells has launched online what the company calls the Small Business Resource Center, which provides a number of business-related services. Customers, for example, can chat online with someone who'll advise them on how to prepare a news release, or develop a payroll system.

But some futuristic predictions that ATMS and the Internet would eliminate face-to-face banking have not yet crystallized. Instead, Internet banking is a complement to a diverse banking business. "We are seeing people using Internet banking," says First State Bank's Mike Stanford. "We don't see it replacing our branches. We see our people using it for a little while and dropping off after the novelty wears off."

To some degree, generational and occupational differences come into play. While many people still want that personal contact with their banker, others, contends Stanford, simply don't have the time or desire to make a stop at their local bank. Still, acknowledges Stanford, the importance of Internet banking is only likely to grow with the passage of time. "My kids don't want to go into a bank," he chuckles. "They want to do everything in the living room."

What some customers think

Bank customers, as you might expect, have varying views on the ongoing changes in the banking industry. Some are happy, some are not. Here are a few random comments.

Mergers and buy-outs have left many business owners wondering whether they will be just another number in a million-person computer file. Take, for example, Arnold Orquiz, the owner of Amigos Mexican Foods, Inc. in Deming. Orquiz says he watched with trepidation as one local bank underwent numerous metamorphoses. For the food producer, credit lines are of key importance.

"Every time they change the president, they change the loan officer," says Orquiz. "Every time you go there, you have to start from scratch. They want to know your whole history." Orquiz's solution is Deming's First New Mexico Bank, which he says gives him the type of personalized service he needs.

Los Lunas business owner Bobby Stiliwell once worked in a bank himself before opening a combination laundromat and car wash (wash your clothes as you wash your car?). "Generally, I've had a good experience in the banking industry and with bankers," he says. But Stiliwell, who says interest rates are his bottom line, says he's miffed about advertising that exaggerates customer service. "I frankly have a hard time seeing that materialize. It's nice to get personal service.