04/23/2015
Citizens Bank introduces new corporate purchasing card program tailored to the needs of Massachusetts law firms
In addition to streamlining procurement and purchasing, new offerings are designed
to increase “IOLTA” revenue for Bay State legal aid organizations
BOSTON – Citizens Bank today announced the launch of a new corporate purchasing card program for Massachusetts law firms that allows firms to have their “cash back” rewards sent directly to the state’s central source of funding for nonprofit legal aid organizations. Participating customers may also be eligible for a premium interest rate paid on IOLTA deposits held at Citizens Bank.
Citizens designed its new corporate purchasing card offer for Massachusetts law firms and its new trust account offering in consultation with its law firm clients and with the Massachusetts Interest On Lawyer Trust Accounts Committee, which receives the interest earned on the funds firms hold in trust for their clients to help fund civil legal aid organizations. In recent years, lower interest rates have led to decreased IOLTA funding in Massachusetts, even as legal aid organizations have reported increased demand for their services, according to the state IOLTA committee.
“Our enhanced offerings for Massachusetts law firms underscore Citizens’ commitment to the legal industry and to the local communities that we and our law firm clients serve,” said Jerry Sargent, President of Citizens Bank in Massachusetts. “This program offers firms both a very effective purchasing solution and an opportunity to increase their support for civil legal aid organizations at no additional cost to them.”
As more firms utilize the corporate purchasing card, Citizens will be able to increase the rebate rates, generating additional IOLTA revenue. Law firms may choose to donate all or part of their earned cash rebate to the state IOLTA program to fund nonprofit legal aid organizations providing civil legal aid services.
"The Citizens team has done a great job of listening to the needs of their clients in the legal community and coming up with a solution that helps firms ensure the fairness of our legal system by contributing to civil legal aid for the poor," said Jayne Tyrrell, Executive Director of the Massachusetts IOLTA Committee. "Offering this program demonstrates Citizens' financial commitment to supporting access to justice for the residents of Massachusetts."
Citizens’ new corporate purchasing card program offers:
- Product specialists who will work with your accounts payable department to build the right program tailored to the specific needs of your law firm.
- Online maintenance tools and daily data feeds that allow you to better manage the program.
- A customized financial incentive package that rewards law firms for driving purchase volume on items they purchase every day.
- Pricing flexibility allowing for pooling of rebates.
For more information about Citizens Commercial Banking and Citizens’ corporate purchasing card with new IOLTA benefits, go to the Citizens Commercial Banking website.
About Citizens Financial Group, Inc.
Citizens Financial Group Inc. (NYSE: CFG) is one of the nation’s oldest and largest financial institutions, with $132.9 billion in assets as of December 31, 2014. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, the company offers a broad range of retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutions. Consumer Banking helps its retail customers “bank better” with mobile and online banking, a 24/7 customer contact center and the convenience of approximately 3,200 ATMs and approximately 1,200 Citizens Bank and Charter One branches in 11 states in the New England, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions. Citizens also provides mortgage lending, auto lending, student lending and commercial banking services in selective markets nationwide. Citizens Commercial Banking offers corporate, institutional and not-for-profit clients a full range of wholesale banking products and services including lending and deposits, capital markets, treasury services, foreign exchange and interest hedging, leasing and asset finance, specialty finance and trade finance. Citizens operates via subsidiaries Citizens Bank, N.A., and Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania. Additional information about Citizens and its full line of products and services can be found at www.citizensbank.com.
