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Special Reports
Document Services
Intelligent Doc Handling
By Brad Finkelstein
Executives at Capsilon FSG here describe their Loan Katalyst product as bringing
an "intelligent" approach to the document management process.
Jim Hennessy, Capsilon's managing director, explained that this means the program has to do the same processes
that a human would normal do in undertaking the task.
For example, Loan Katalyst takes a file that has been faxed to the user, turns it into an image and breaks it down
into the various component documents. It does this without the need for inserting blank sheets as separators. The
program does not require pre-processing or bar coding.
It negotiates each file the same way an underwriter or processor thinks, he said. It makes use of "rules-based
triggering of events." The program eliminates a lot of the "clunkiness" in the process, explained
Capsilon chief operating officer Greg Bowcott. In many shops, paper files are still being used, moved from desk
to desk and the process is slowed.
Now, Mr. Hennessy said, several people can work the file on simultaneously as it can be viewed on a computer screen.
Various levels of access permissions are part of the system. So even mortgage wholesalers can let their brokers
view the documents and check on loan status, noted Mr. Bowcott. It also allows employees to work from home and
it allows for "load sharing," where a file can be moved from a busy location to a less busy one to be
worked on.
It is run as "software as a service" over the Internet. The only types of software users need to use
Loan Katalyst are Flash and Acrobat Reader. "There's no elaborate IT integration necessary, so users realize
savings from the very first loan. It's better than ROI. It's return before investment."
Loan Katalyst eliminates waiting time and the need to deal with phone calls. It also enables offshore outsourcing,
Mr. Hennessy said. "The secret of intelligent document management starts with recognizing the docs as they
flow into the organization, whether from branches, brokers or in a centralized environment. We start the process
intelligently by automatically recognizing individual documents as they arrive, even if they are in clunky PDFs
or as large, multidocument faxes," he explained.
Cost savings, especially now that margins are tightening and originations are declining, are another advantage
of using Loan Katalyst, the executives said. "It becomes even more critical for lenders to uncover every possible
means for controlling costs in origination and in post-closing," said Mr. Bowcott. "The first place to
look is the cost of creating the loan. If you can't control your documents, you can't control your costs."
More lenders and investors are taking loan package delivery electronically, Mr. Hennessy said, and "they don't
want to see white paper."
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