By Snapping up Commerciant, BankServ Enters Mobile Market

Specialty payment processor BankServ, one of the pioneers of remote deposit capture, is preparing a move into the mobile-payments market thanks to its recent acquisition of the assets of Commerciant LP. Houston-based Commerciant offers merchants wireless payments software and a unique wireless terminal that scans checks and takes credit card payments. “It's the only one in the world that we know can do both,” David F. Kvederis, BankServ's president and chief executive, tells Digital Transactions News. But San Francisco-based BankServ is getting more than Commerciant's line of Mobilescape-branded handheld terminals (the Mobilescape 3000 takes cards only, while the Mobilescape 5000 handles cards and checks). It's also getting the 9-year-old company's processing platform and patents. “The processing system in the background, Mobilescape Manager?that was really the key ingredient for us,” says Kvederis. He notes that Mobilescape Manager integrates with accounting-software programs such as Intuit Inc.'s QuickBooks and Sage Software Inc.'s Peachtree that are key elements of BankServ's core DepositNow offering for small businesses. BankServ is expected to announce on Wednesday a new mobile check-and-card payments product that uses the Commerciant technology. With that, BankServ will be able to offer mobile payments in addition to the online processing, point-of-sale card processing and POS check processing that it already sold, according to Kvederis. The acquisition also includes Commerciant's independent sales organization relationships. Commerciant processes for about 6,000 merchants, including AirTran Airways and the Applebee's restaurant chain. BankServ processes for about 40,000 merchants, about half of which are doing remote deposit capture. The patents involve the provisioning of software within the payment terminals, according to Kvederis. Kvederis says BankServ was looking for a mobile-payments solution and first approached Commerciant approximately a year ago about a possible deal, but nothing came of it then. BankServ later found a potential partner in Europe, which Kvederis won't identify, but checked in with Commerciant one more time. With market conditions much different, the two sides resumed talking recently. Neither of the privately held companies disclosed terms of their deal. “We were able to find a middle ground that worked for everybody,” Kvederis says. BankServ is replacing the Commerciant name with its own. Commerciant's chief executive, Tim D. Davis, will stay on for a few months but then move on to a start-up company. Richard Howell, Commerciant's chief operating officer, will head BankServ's Houston office. Howell tells Digital Transactions News that mobile payments can be a tough sell with merchants, but technology and other market forces are converging to build a business case. “It's going to be a very, very fun next three to five years,” he says.