Fiserv says Merrill is deploying its multi-currency, multi-instrument reconciliation platform globally, with regional hubs.

The implementation commenced with the reconciliation of cash flows for a key business area, which went live in December 2007, and will move to other business areas before the end of 2008. As part of the deal, CheckFree provided ongoing consulting and training surrounding the migration.

"Through this implementation, we will be able to consolidate our reconciliation instances significantly, in line with our defined business areas, and increase our efficiency and minimise the system operating costs typically associated with the middle and back office," says Andrew McKibben, change & support services, GMI services technology, Merrill Lynch. "With a more accurate view of information across the enterprise, we can ensure better management and transparency across offices in different locations, while enhancing our ability to serve our clients."

The vendor says Merrill chose CheckFree Frontier after an evaluation process and performance benchmarking results. The system currently accommodates requirements for up to 600 simultaneous users and more than 1000 read-only users.

Mark Cappell, SVP and general manager, operational risk management, CheckFree, Fiserv, says by further automating the reconciliation process, the implementation will help Merrill Lynch to minimide costs, focus on exceptions more quickly and provide better transparency to meet compliance requirements.

Fiserv acquired the reconciliation technology when it bought out electronic banking and payments vendor CheckFree in an all-cash transaction worth $4.4 billion last year.