Leipzig, 27.07.2022. In 2021, Sparkasse Fulda decided as a result of a project to switch to the safebag procedure for customer coin deposits in the future. The aim of the project was to optimize cash processes through increased security and simplification, as well as avoiding manual, redundant activities. During the market analysis to find which software solution best supports these goals, Sparkasse Fulda became aware of ALVARA Digital Solutions.
“The company ALVARA was quickly ready to present their solution and make an offer. The presented functionality exactly matched our expectations,” says Thorsten Stumpf, Head of Organization and Production at Sparkasse Fulda.
“The volume of coin and note money is not decreasing. Customers still hand over a lot of coin money to Sparkasse. This results in downstream costs in money processing, storage, and transport. Cash processes also often have media disruptions and interfaces,” says ALVARA | Digital Solutions Managing Director Steven Schwarznau. To respond more efficiently to these challenges, after reviewing the entire cash process, Sparkasse decided to use solutions from ALVARA | Digital Solutions.
For documented receipt of customer safebags, including preparing receipts and handing them to the cash-in-transit service (WDL) as well as individual pricing, Sparkasse Fulda introduced ALVARA ICC in branches and the Cash Pricing module in the main cash office in April 2022.
This is how the safebag process works with ALVARA products: At the Sparkasse counter, the safebag including customer data is recorded, and a customer receipt is created. The WDL driver collects the safebags from branches, counts them in the cash center, and transmits the count result to ALVARA ICC. Customer data no longer needs to be handed over to the WDL and recorded again by them during counting.
Sparkasse Fulda imports the safebag data into the Cash Pricing module after the count. In this module, the fee model is configured, fees are calculated, and booking files are created.
For staff in the main cash office of the Sparkasse, the new process means less effort – thanks to standardized processes. Furthermore, comprehensive and rapid data analysis regarding individual customers is now possible. Additionally, the "Track & Trace" function of ALVARA ICC enables control of WDL activities and thus supports outsourcing management.
Particularly in view of the current failure of numerous card payment terminals and the thereby increasing cash volume, banks and savings banks are well advised to rely on ALVARA's solutions. They benefit from efficient and secure processes around cash management.