Hosted IVR

January 11, 2013

Billtrust Reinforces Position in Billing and Payment Industry through Acquisition of Best Practice Systems

By Madhubanti Rudra
TMCnet Contributor

The stake holders in the eBilling industry today witnessed the merger of two key industry players, who, according to industry watchers, have the potential to change the course of market direction in the coming days.

Billtrust and Best Practice Systems sealed a strategic merger agreement that would allow the companies to act as a unit and jointly roll out comprehensive billing services.

Over two dozens of industries are expected to benefit from the arrangement.

Hamilton, NJ-based Billtrust provides outsourced, customer-centric billing solutions under the CompleteBilling brand. CompleteBilling consists of a suite of products and services, including paper, fax, e-mail and online billing (EBPP, EIPP).

In addition, the company provides an array of billing design tools and services, designed to automate the billing process for the customers. These, according to Billtrust, enable businesses to save money, increase productivity, improve cash flow and seamlessly migrate to electronic delivery.

Best Practice Systems is a supplier of Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment (EBPP) solutions, designed to enable customers to view and pay their bills online.

According to industry experts, Billtrust and Best Practice Systems are ideally suited for a merger of this kind. Both companies are focused on driving electronic billing and payment, and both of them are committed to offer a comprehensive billing solution that includes print and electronic billing capabilities in one single package.

As far as the consequences of the merger are concerned, experts say the merging companies, as well as the industry at large, will benefit from this move.

Billtrust has carved a strong presence in the business-to-business (B2B), business-to-consumer (B2C), municipality and utility markets, while Best Practice Systems has a strong presence in the B2C realm, particularly in the insurance and healthcare industries.

By acting as one unit, Billtrust and Best Practice Systems will be able to offer a more powerful electronic billing solution, incorporating such advanced capabilities as receivables processing across all channels, automated interfaces for users and channel-agnostic information reporting, satisfying the diverse billing needs of customers in both B2B and B2C realms.

Customers will enjoy the benefits of using a comprehensive solution, while the merged entity will be able to capture the markets in both B2B and B2C realms.

“Billtrust and Best Practice Systems are a great fit. Our customer bases are diverse, spanning different market segments and billing needs,” Billtrust CEO and president, Flint Lane, noted in a statement. “Our joint electronic offerings will place us in a commanding position within the industry. Most of all, Best Practice Systems shares our unwavering commitment to customer service.”

“Together we expect to provide an even greater level of service to our current and prospective customers,” Lane added.

CEO of Best Practice Systems, Clint Waite, is hopeful of jointly delivering an increased service offering for the industry.

“Our two companies share the same values and are committed to driving electronic billing and payment within our customer base. Moreover, we are two of only a handful of providers that deliver the complete value proposition including print and electronic billing,” Waite said.

A few months ago, Billtrust secured a substantial capital investment from Bain Capital Ventures, a part of which utilized for the acquisition of Best Practice Systems. The company plans to acquire a few more in the upcoming days, with an aim to further strengthen its position in the billing and payments industry.

Billtrust previously released btConnect for eBanking, an addition to the company's suite of btConnect accounts receivable automation services. 

Want to learn more about the latest in communications and technology? Then be sure to attend ITEXPO Miami 2013, Jan 29- Feb. 1 in Miami, Florida.  Stay in touch with everything happening at ITEXPO (News - Alert). Follow us on Twitter.

Edited by Braden Becker