7-Eleven Steps Further Into Online Banking

The convenience-store chain already has Web-ready machines in 58 of its Texas stores, and customers have "responded well" to the idea, the company said.

The new kiosks are designed to let customers buy money orders, transfer funds, pay bills and cash checks, and also handle traditional ATM transactions.

The kiosks -- known as Vcom machines -- were developed with NCR and Mosaic and run on Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) NT software with an Internet browser.

Going Wide

7-Eleven, which says it runs the largest chain of stores in the convenience retailing industry, said it expects to expand the Vcom offerings to include touch-screen access to services like ticketing, travel directions and road maps -- and possibly online shopping services, in conjunction with the distribution centers serving 7-Eleven stores.

John Harris, vice president of 7-Eleven's Florida division, said the company chose Fort Myers and Naples because the stores in those cities do a brisk business in financial products like money orders.

"While Vcom services will appeal especially to the 'under- and unbanked' population, past experience has taught us that a broad range of individuals who already have bank accounts like the convenience of 24-hours-a-day, 365-day-a-year access," Harris said.

The kiosks use a menu-driven system in English and Spanish, as well as a phone that provides access to bilingual customer service representatives, 7-Eleven said.

Next Step

The convenience store chain has already waded into the financial services pool. According to 7-Eleven, its U.S. stores sell US$4 billion worth of money orders each year, and automated teller machines (ATMs) in its stores handle 105 million transactions annually.

7-Eleven said it is in negotiations with several "premier companies" to secure national contracts for additional Web-based services that its consumers may want, including banking and e-shopping. Depending on which deals are closed, the Vcom machines may also offer such services as branch banking, vehicle registration, credit reports, loans and insurance, 7-Eleven said.

The company said it currently uses American Express to provide ATM services, Western Union for money orders and money transfers, and that it recently signed an agreement with Equifax to handle the check-cashing portion of the Vcom services.

After the Test

If all goes well with the tests, 7-Eleven said, it will bring Vcom kiosks to its stores across the U.S. beginning later this year. Consumers could eventually use Vcom to order books, CDs and other products and services using 7-Eleven's existing distribution infrastructure, the company said.

"We believe that Vcom can help us build upon our existing offerings to provide customers with convenient and trustworthy access to other financial and Web services," said Harris.

7-Eleven has more than 21,000 stores in the United States, Canada and 18 other countries and U.S. territories. The stores accounted for $29 billion in sales last year, according to the company.