Client profile

Founded in 1872, Lake City Bank is recognized as a regional banking leader, providing highly personalized and customer-driven services. This community-focused, community-driven and community-led bank provides retail, commercial and wealth management products across 53 locations in Northern and Central Indiana.

Lake City Bank offers the sophisticated products and services provided by large banks, while staying true to its long-term commitment to customer relationships of every size and scope.

What led Lake City Bank to choose an integrated core platform for modernization and growth?

Lake City Bank learned that its existing core banking system was being sunset in 2011, and the search for a replacement began. Coming from an older core connected to a variety of disparate third-party tools, the bank developed a modernization plan to streamline its systems and decided to use the core conversion as an opportunity for extensive digital transformation.

Beyond its core, the bank sought to upgrade its card systems and enhance its online banking interface. The project team also introduced sales management operations, creating custom scripts that migrated front-line work to the back office for processing, reducing the use of emails and manual forms to increase efficiency and cost-savings.

Lake City Bank selected FIS® Integrated Banking System (IBS) to meet the project team’s goals to:

• Minimize vendor involvement: Reduce levels of third-party vendor engagement by moving to a highly integrated, adaptable system with a wide range of built-in tools, optimizing efficiency and operational ease.
• Enhance efficiency: Decrease the reliance on manual tasks and cumbersome workarounds to increase productivity and reduce the risk of manual error.
• Elevate the user experience: Improve the user experience for its entire customer base, from sophisticated, complex commercial customers to standard personal account customers.
• Grow strategically: Partner with a technology provider who can help the bank stay on the forefront of product development and scale with its growth.

How did FIS help streamline Lake City Bank’s operations?

With the sunsetting of its legacy core system, Lake City Bank took the opportunity to modernize. The bank harnessed the power of the IBS core-processing platform from FIS to drive data-driven decisions, facilitate scalable growth and develop leading-edge products tailored to customer demands.

After conversion, the bank experienced a big operational lift due to the wide variety of tools integrated into the flexible, user-friendly core platform.

How Lake City Bank boosted efficiency and performance:

• Simple onboarding for personal accounts: New customers experience a seamless account opening process while bank staff quickly verify identity and background in compliance with KYC and AML guidelines.
• Greater regulatory compliance and vigilance against fraud: Automated monitoring and notifications help the bank stay current with fast-changing regulations, while built-in risk management enables it to stay ahead of fraud.
• Easier debit card and check ordering: Employees move more efficiently when serving the needs of new checking customers and cardholders, without the distraction of visiting third-party ordering sites.
• Simplified lending credits: Despite unique, complicated credits on the lending side, the system’s built-in automation reduces cumbersome manual workarounds for new-found efficiency.
• Efficient item processing for search and retrieval: An integrated image center and streamlined archiving enables employees and clients to search and retrieve images, as well as import them from external sources.
• Connectivity with third-party vendors: API interfaces now make it possible for bank and partner systems to talk to each other, expediting the delivery of services to bank employees and customers.
• Additional power tools for enhanced performance: The bank and its customers now benefit from remittance processing for lockbox, remote deposit capture for corporate customers, retail mobile deposit and bill pay.

How did FIS’ core banking platform support Lake City Bank’s rapid growth?

At the onset of the core conversion, Lake City Bank had just over $2 billion in assets. By 2023, the bank was managing over three times as much, at $6.4 billion. Because of the efficiencies provided by FIS’ core banking platform, the bank has seen little need to add operations staff to support its growth.

How has Lake City Bank evolved its offerings to stay ahead of customer expectations?

Lake City Bank has introduced new products and services since its digital transformation, strengthening the bank’s competitive edge and providing customers with the continual evolution of services they expect.

The bank has created five new products around FIS® Relationship Value Management (RVM), which provides customer relationship insights for its rewards and benefits program.

FIS® Extended Account Analysis (XAA) with multitier cash management sweeps for commercial treasury management has been especially impactful. XAA makes it easier for Lake City Bank to understand customer needs and goals. The team can forecast, predict and intelligently share complex insights with customers, and XAA has given the bank an edge in bringing in new business.

Lake City Bank currently uses 138 FIS solutions and services, and is preparing to add real-time payments for small-business originations in business banking.