Deluxe Corp. Will Acquire eFunds Firm

Deluxe Corp., continuing its transformation from a check-printing operation to an electronic-payment powerhouse, said it will acquire eFunds Corp., a privately held 31-employee firm based in Tustin.

The company, which will become a subsidiary of Minnesota-based Deluxe, provides technology that converts a customer’s checks into data that is routed electronically by stores to automated clearinghouses and banks for processing.

It handles about 6 million checks annually for retailers and financial service firms, eliminating the need to sort, stamp, pack and truck checks to banks and clearinghouses.

An estimated 60 billion checks are written annually in the United States.

The technology also shortens the time and lessens the cost of processing checks. The check is scanned at a store counter, the bank’s name and address, account number, routing number and amount are captured and routed electronically to the retailer’s bank, the clearinghouse and the customer’s bank.

The check is returned immediately to the customer, stamped “void--processed electronically.” The “eCheck” is programmed to allow people a float of one to two days before the amount is withdrawn from their bank account.

“This technology complements our existing core competencies and provides a foundation for future electronic-payment solutions and revenue growth,” said Gus Blanchard, Deluxe chief executive.

The acquisition, which was announced Wednesday, is expected to close by the end of the month.

Deluxe has been paring and refocusing its operations for the past two years, selling some subsidiaries and cutting its work force from 19,200 employees in June 1997 to 15,500. The company intends to cut another 1,400 jobs by 2000.