New face of ATM(Automated Teller Machine)

“IFX” -- not just another bank computer acronym to file and forget – it’s the key to integrating the ATM channel with Internet banking, the call center and the rest of the enterprise.

The ATM industry is undergoing the most significant transformation in its history, Stephen Risto, director, ATM Software Center of Expertise, NCR, said during a Wednesday afternoon session. Potential changes involve a richer set of functions, open standards, response to Check 21, regulatory compliance, relationship marketing, personalization and enterprise integration.

Every component of the software stack on an ATM is in flux at this moment, Risto said. “There’s strong industry consensus on the primary technologies for ATMs for the next five to 10 years.”

Those include the Windows operating system, the SNMP protocol that carries detailed information about the health of the machine, the TCP/IP communication protocol that enables integration with the rest of the bank, and client-server architecture that enables the full applications needed to provide customers with the services they want on today’s ATMs.

Among the most notable is IFX, or “Interactive Financial eXchange,” a business messaging standard developed by the financial industry and technology providers. It is vendor-independent, eliminating proprietary formats. Most important, IFX can be used by multiple channels.

For customers, that means consistent services and branding across channels and a consistent user interface. For the bank, it means a common infrastructure that enables re-use of applications, tools, and staff skills across channels.

George Throckmorton, senior marketing manager, ACI Worldwide, Sandston, Virginia, said there is no deviation from the standard among vendors so far. The standard is developed and protected through an organizational structure that includes a board of directors, steering and architecture committees and working groups that focus on specific applications such as electronic bill presentation and payment, business banking, credit application processing, insurance, ATMs, point of sale and branch and Web services.

First National Bank of Omaha, which has more than 350 ATMs and customers in all 50 states, plans to start obtaining the benefits early in 2005. Scott McCormack, director of Self-Service Banking, said the company started its migration to IFX in late 2001 as part of complying with requirements for Triple DES encryption and accommodation of customers with disabilities.