Michigan Banker

Conferencing Technologies Surging - But Benefits are Mixed for Community Banks

While much of the information technology sector struggles in this recession, web and video conferencing saw sharp growth in 2008 and so far in 2009. One reason is that businesses are seeking lower-cost ways to stay in touch and provide services.

The banking industry is no exception to this trend, and individual banks are creating the technology mix that makes sense for them. An example is Capitol Bancorp, a network of community banks nationwide, with executive offices in Lansing and in Phoenix, Arizona. Capitol recently discontinued its use of video conferencing because, CTO Ed Kessler says, video conferencing didn’t match Capitol’s
branch office model.