ABA Endorses Online Marketplace for Bank Assets

Feb 4 - Through its Corporation for American Banking subsidiary, the American Bankers Association has endorsed Bank Assetpoint (www.bankassetpoint.com), a new nationwide online marketplace that connects banks and other participants looking to buy or sell performing or distressed bank assets. Promontory Interfinancial Network, which provides the new Bank Assetpoint service through a wholly owned subsidiary, has announced the service’s beta launch.

Banks, real estate brokers, and other participants in the commercial real estate and bank loan markets can use the Bank Assetpoint service to post or search listings for a wide range of assets, including bank-owned commercial real estate, performing and non-performing loans, loan participations, and pools of loans. In addition, banks will be able to use Bank Assetpoint to find specialty service providers, such as asset appraisers, real estate brokers, and loan sale advisors, based on specific search criteria.

The Bank Assetpoint service also includes a virtual data room feature powered by IntraLinks, which allows sellers of bank assets to post and control access to confidential content about assets for use by buyers in performing due diligence.

Promontory noted that Bank Assetpoint posting fees are generally waived for an introductory period through Dec. 31, 2013. Moreover, in recognition that financial institutions have faced difficulties in disposing of assets acquired before the financial crisis, posting fees for pre-2009 assets are waived indefinitely.

“For a decade now, Promontory has delivered quality services that have enhanced bank competitiveness and profitability,” said Frank Keating, ABA president and CEO. “Weeks after Promontory offered its flagship service, the Certificate of Deposit Account Registry Service, or CDARS, in 2003, ABA endorsed it. We later endorsed two other funding services Promontory created, and today we are just as pleased to include Bank Assetpoint as an ABA-endorsed solution to our members.”

Bank Assetpoint is operated by Assetpoint Services LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Promontory Interfinancial Network LLC. Approximately 3,000 financial institutions participate in Promontory’s network by using use one or more of its deposit allocation services. These institutions include approximately 40 percent of the banks in the United States.