2007 and first half of 2008 for ARCOM company that works in the field of acquiring solutions on Russian market more than for 16 years were marked by a few key events. Together with extension of ARCOM’ geographical presence in the countries of the former Soviet Union and achievements in new market segments, ARCOM started the process of restructuring. As a result a new umbrella brand - ARCOM GROUP appeare, under which a range of specific business structures offer their services. Restructuring of the company is performed at the same time with integration processes that are held by one of the key international ARCOMS’vendor – Ingenico during consolidation of its’ business direction of payment solutions with the same direction of Sagem (SARFAN Group). How these events reflected on the business of ARCOM? How they influence on relationship of the company with its’ clients? Pavel Alexandrov, founder and General Manager of ARCOM tells us about nowadays positions on the market, ideology and strategy of one of the biggest technological solutions and system integrator suppliers on Russian acquiring market.

System integration and acquiring network outsourcing

Today Arcom company is present almost in all payment system market segments. We are suppliers not only of acquiring equipment, but also of complex program solutions developed by us. First of all Arcom is a system integrator of massive acquiring projects where together with products of world producers Arcoms’ innovative program/software solutions and technologies are used.
Particularly lately we recommended ourselves as one of the most competent Russian company in the field of IT service outsourcing for bank sector. Since 2002 ARCOM presents complex outsourcing service for controlling, maintenance and developing of acquiring bank networks and was the first company that offered such a service in Russia. At that ARCOM is responsible for 24x7 continuous operation of POS-terminal and/or ATM network, giving a possibility to banks to concentrate on business development.
As I already mentioned, apart from long-term cooperation with international vendors – producers and suppliers of acquiring equipment and solutions ARCOM is developing such directions as general-purpose kiosks production and development of software products including POS-terminal network complex control systems.
ARCOMS’ program-technical solutions used for development and production of self-payment systems are universal and flexible that gives a possibility to expand range of services, connect with different payment systems and processing centers. For the moment, our software case includes terminal software, standard front and back office solutions to work with almost any processing systems on the market and developments in the field of specialized program products – starting from additional business applications EMV standard to applications of compulsory and optional medical insurance, social applications, fuel applets, etc.
I would like to mark a complex hardware/software solution PowerSoft for automatic payment reception for mobile phone and housing services. This solution includes front-office and back-office modules, ABC integration module, monitoring and kiosk controlling module, points of service software and full range of hardware. Actually this is a turnkey payment system of a regional level. For transaction routing this system is using direct connection of “processing billing” operator or cooperates with leading Russian payment reception systems.
At that all our program products initially are developed considering international and Russian standards including safety requirements, of course.
Thanks to a big experience and competence in different fields of acquiring activity ARCOM is among those few Russian IT structures that are offering full cycle services of development and exploitation modern payment systems.
In the software field ARCOM also offers development of unique specialized program products in the following directions:

• Terminal software (including EMV-compatible);
• Front-office modules and monitoring systems of selfpayment networks:
• Back-office modules and specialized systems (for ex., budget funds accounting for each compulsory insured person)

Thus, ARCOM today can offer to banks or any other interested structures finished competitive integrated acquiring solutions. Within the framework of these solutions POS-terminal Ingenico solutions, cash registers Wincor Nixdorf and Diebold, selfpayment terminals “Infotochka” produced by ARCOM and our own program developments (covering all range of elements of acquiring network project – starting with business applications to acquiring network control system) are used together. This enables to consider our activity as a work of payment integrator and outsource company that is ready to fulfill tasks of the following servicing, support and acquiring project development.

Pavel Aleksandrov, the founder and the general director of ARCOM company
After finishing radio engineering faculty of the Leningrad electrotechnical institute of V.I.Ulyanov (Lenin) in 1986 Pavel Aleksandrov worked for a few years in the sphere of automation of municipal economy of St.-Petersburg.
In 1991 he founded the company on automation of productions and bank activity. The first project in the field of construction of payment systems with use of smart cards that he supervised was realized for Credo-bank on the Leningrad atomic power station in 1993. Today quantity of ARCOMs’ clients in Russia and other CIS countries is more than 150 banks, among which there are such largest participants of the card market, as Sberbank Bank, Alpha bank, Bank of Moscow, "VTB North-West", Promsvjazbank, UCS and a number of others.
In 1996 Pavel Aleksandrov finished the International Business school (МВА) and in 2004 - training under the Federal program of preparation of administrative staff for the national economy organizations of the Russian Federation in a speciality "Management"

Expansion on vertical markets

In our strategy of development we pay much attention to expansion on vertical markets, including regular payment servicing of the population to the address of mass services suppliers (mobile operators, Internet-providers, public utilities, etc), filling station chain, restaurant business, medical insurance and help in social programs realization. All these segments today are one of the perspective directions of ARCOM Group’s activity. I would like to mark that apart from solutions for bank sector our company has a wide range of developments that are oriented for use on a range of vertical markets. Among most important directions and market segments where ARCOM is a supplier of equipment, technologies and system integrator the following directions can be mentioned:

• Regular payment reception of the population;
• Accounting and control of benefits in the framework of salary projects;
• Medical insurance;
• Social programs;
• Accounting and control of goods issue (including projects of fuel cards, performed on filling station chain);
• Organization of a network for utility bills reception;
• Discount systems, restaurant business, etc;

Using all the experience  and resources ARCOM is performing for the market participators’ development of  the structure of electronic payment-accounting system, integration of the project to the existing program field of the Customer, software development for wide range of the terminal equipment (ATM, POS-terminals, etc.), maintenance and servicing of POS-terminal network, including guarantee and post guarantee maintenance of the software and equipment in the framework of  complex outsourcing.

ARCUS: safe acquiring on cash registers

Among complex acquiring products developed by ARCOM much attention is paid to ARCUS system – hardware/software solution that is oriented basically on bank - acquires that are servicing payment cards in points of sales which are equipped by cash registers.
Equipping of cash registers by PIN-pads is a high priority task of a safety acquiring organization. Because of the quick pace of EMV-migration interest that Russian banks-acquires show to the solution that is able to provide EMV-cards and magnetic cards reception at points of sales equipped by ATMs is getting more and more obvious. This task is really important for mass service centers, such as big shops, fast-food business, cash-settlement centers, booking offices, pos offices, points of a mobile communication payment reception, etc.
Considering great demand for complex products ready to provide EMV-cards and magnetic cards reception on the base of ATM on acquiring market, starting from 2004 ARCOM supplies its clients with hardware-software solution - ARCUS system. Hardware-software complex ARCUS meets all the requirements and provides with additional possibilities for acquiring infrastructure development.
ARCUS Systems’ architecture consists of a few software and hardware components including in basic package Ingenico pin-pads of the last generation on the UNICAPTtm32, specialized pin-pad application and ARCUS software that is installed on ATM or transaction server.
Its worth mentioning, that ARCUS System has a wide range of advantages. First of all aggregate cost of hardware/software complex is much lower than acquiring network adaptation by installation of EMV-compatible POS-terminals. After putting into operation ARCUS System bank doesn’t have to provide additional training of the staff of the company as it is needed in the case of POS-terminal installation. ARCUS implementation enables to decide a problem of telephone telecommunication that is typical for POS-terminals use. In such a way system implementation increases the speed of point of sale work in general and the quality of customer servicing.
ARCUS solution, provided by ARCOM may be used effectively not only in mass service centers, but also in Hotel service network, restaurants etc.
This solution is really important for banks who are interested in volume of investment optimization that is necessary not only for acquiring infrastructure extension by new areas of retail trade business, but also for existing terminal network adaptation to EMV-standards requirements.
Effectiveness of ARCUS System is proved by the fact that today this complex product than initially was developed as a local cash registers’ solution, is in-demand and has a lot of installations in different trade networks of federal level (such as “Lenta”, “Domovoy”, etc.) on all the territory of Russia. Today installation geography of ARCUS base consists of wide range of regions of the country. In Q2 2008 its list was added by such cities as Volgograd, Krasnodar, Naberezhnye Chelny, Condopoga, Petrozavodsk and others.

Stake on R&D: “ARCOM Vision”

Key role in ARCOMS’ business strategy is given to R&D direction. Recently we started a new internal program “ARCOM Vision” and within its framework all ARCOMS’ research work is being held. “ARCOM Vision” implementation enables us to analyze and determine our vision of development tendency of software applications on acquiring market and also hold testing of developing model range of POS-terminal Ingenico equipment. “ARCOM Vision” System provides with universality and continuity of our hardware-software solutions – from a model to a model and from the family to a family. Options and replaceable devices that are promoted by us in the form of replacement modules increase flexibility of the use of these complex solutions and extend the field of use for out clients, who get the possibility to extend their own clients base by providing additional services.

Extending geography of presence

Having taken strong positions in the Russian market, our company actively expands the geographical presence at the expense of coverage of the CIS countries and an exit to the international market. Today hardware-software solutions of ARCOM are widely claimed not only on territory of Russia, but also on variety of the markets of the countries of near and far abroad. Vivid examples are big projects realized by our company in Serbia, Germany, Kazakhstan and republic Belarus.

"Infotochka" self-service terminals’ family

Today ARCOM is one of the leaders in producing self-service terminals on Russian market. Our company offers a new family of modern self-service terminals “Infotochka” that includes Modules of the automated deposit of cash money resources (cash-in), devices for work with bank cards, readers of strokes-codes, change-exchange devices and other equipment necessary for clients’ service.
Universal self-service terminal “Infotochka” is an anti-vandal device which can be installed in any premise and by means of the multimedia interface allows different categories of the population to carry out regular payments (payment of utilities, mobile communication etc.) by cash or bank cards, and also to make a wide range of operations with the bank accounts. The terminal meets the modern requirements of the international payment systems imposed to the bank terminal equipment, working both with "magnetic" cards, and with microprocessor cards of EMV standard.
Moreover, looking in the future and building development strategy in this direction, I would like to mention the development and realization by ARCOMs’ experts of model "Infotochka-house" - a wall type or mounted in a wall device which in the nearest future may offer the user the widest spectrum of services – starting from an IP-telephony to payment, security and many other functions execution.

Ingenico and Sagem: the globalization epoch proceeds

ARCOMs’ cooperation with the world leader in the field of production and deliveries of the POS-terminal equipment  - the French company Ingenico is already more than 12 years. Since 2004 we are a distributor and the official representative of Ingenico in Russia, carrying out deliveries of its equipment and technologies, and also providing a full cycle of its service, including guarantee and post guarantee support.
Today ARCOM supplies Russian market with almost all lineup of POS-terminals Ingenico of last generation on UNICAPT ™ 32 platform, including the solutions supporting data transmission wireless technologies (Wi-Fi, BlueTooth, GSM/GPRS-terminals) and intellectual PIN-pads, that offers a wide spectrum of services to clients.
In the beginning of 2007 Ingenico has opened its representative office in Russia that is quite a big structure that gives effective support to partners and clients in CIS region and Mongolia. In my opinion, Ingenico’s presence in Russia positively affected development of the market: both technical, and organizational questions were decided much faster and what is important, the so-called language barrier has completely disappeared in communication between market participants and a vendor. Active work of Russian representative office of Ingenico has considerably strengthened cooperation between ARCOM and its vendor and made its closer and efficient.
This year Ingenico for the first time has held the meeting for all distributors in Russia, CIS and Mongolia; working program consisted of «a round table discussion» and thematic seminars. During this meeting companies-partners, including ARCOM, could receive a lot of helpful information and also exchange opinions about updated lineup of Ingenico POS-terminal equipment.
In the end of 2007 Ingenico and Sagem declared about signing the agreement providing merge of business directions on payment solutions development. On this background today in both companies integration processes are being held, the purpose of which is to provide close interrelation of these business structures from geography networks of sales and production lines point of view, and also a combination of each of the companies’ advanced technological base and a know-how in a service component in product line. It is obvious that all these moments in the nearest future will make positive impact on business of our company that as Ingenico distributor can fill up its offers bag with new innovative products and technologies. By this time joint strategy of the further development is already developed by common efforts of Ingenico and Sagem.

ARCOM GROUP: under an umbellate brand

It is interesting to mention that today, at the same time with works on the business integration, that are held by our vendor Ingenico, ARCOM is facing the process of re-structuring accompanied by change of shareholders membership and updating of a trade mark. So, one of the results is a new umbrella brand ARCOM GROUP appearance under which a range of specialized business structures offer their solutions and services creating a single «entering point» for their clients working on all the territory of Russia. Particularly, with this purpose a single federal telephone number across all Russia was put in, allowing clients to address to us directly without dependence on the region of their activity, without remembering dozens of different numbers. This single multichannel telephone line will connect clients both with Moscow and St.-Petersburg offices of ARCOM.
Before starting the detailed story about specialization and different tasks of business structures that work under ARCOM GROUP brand I would like to remind you that abbreviation ARCOM is deciphered as "Advanced Resources for Cards Oriented Market". In conformity with this slogan within the framework of ARCOM GROUP umbrella brand a few legal bodies with narrow activity specialization, together covering almost all directions of the market acquiring solutions market today are joint.
So, ARCOM Payment Systems' Lab specializes on integration systems, hardware solutions development and also program applications development and support.
ARCOM Service provides a wide range of outsourcing services in support and service of POS-terminal and ATM bank networks. As I already marked, in some cases within the frameworks of outsourcing we take full responsibility for uninterrupted functioning of acquiring networks of the client in a 24x7 mode.
Thus we use the branched complex system of condition of terminals monitoring and also system of operative reaction to failures occurrence in work of the terminals, providing the minimum time of reaction that doesn’t not exceed two hours from the moment of the failure.
Today this program is already realized in a wide range of Russian cities. First of all it is Moscow and St.-Petersburg; however, if the bank has branches in other cities, we provide acquiring networks functioning in all regions of its presence. Integrated approach of outsourcing that we offer in this case can vary from a concrete package of services (terminals installation, training of the personnel of a point of sale etc.) to taking a full responsibility for functioning of all acquiring network.
Dynamical growth of acquiring network observed in Russia has caused more and more demands of participants of the market for such services, as complex service support of all types of the terminal equipment. With expansion of geography of POS-terminal and ATM networks participants of the market inevitably start to feel the lack of the qualified service support offer, including remote terminal equipment. This service is very claimed in the market and we are developing it actively.
One more perspective service direction that we are actively expanding is a payment-information terminals servicing.
ARCOM GROUPs’ structure includes also ARCOM Trades’ structure which is carrying out deliveries of a full range of the equipment for payment systems.
ARCOM United provides relations support with foreign business partners and promotion of products and services of the companies-members of ARCOM GROUP on the foreign markets.
Such approach providing exact differentiation of responsibility spheres within the limits of ARCOM GROUP enables flexible business operating and also operative reaction to the constant changes that occur in each sector of the market, without mentioning other business processes.
Besides, realization of this ideology allows us to offer our partners and clients solutions that meet their requirements as much as possible and are perfect for certain projects realized by them.

Growth in all directions

 Analyzing the general results of ARCOM GROUP’s activity for last year and first half of 2008 it is possible to speak with confidence about stable growth of business indicators of the company in all directions of activity. Despite the fact that some decisions of Customs committee of the Russian Federation didn’t reflect very positively on business of the majority of the Russian suppliers working in the market of the POS-terminal equipment, in 2007 growth of ARCOM’s sales in this segment was over 40 %. One of the nearest plans of the company is to open a new branch in one of the Russian regional centers’.
I would like to talk about history of our company’s activity briefly. As it is known, economy development, updating and reorganization of financial institutions of Russia have led to occurrence of a big quantity of banks that, in turn, made the market of the bank equipment, the software, decisions for the automated workplaces, systems of clearing settlements on the basis of payment cards be on demand.
In the beginning of our activity, during works on hardware and banks automation we had to do almost everything - to prepare project documentation, to carry out assembly, adjusting and startup works of the delivered equipment, lay lines of communications and even to launch in operation telephone exchanges. Today ARCOM realizes plenty of big projects; hundred thousand units of the terminal equipment were delivered to Russia and abroad. Company services are in growing demand and the company is famous and occupied one of the leading positions in its segment of the market.
Analyzing all aforesaid, I would like to mention that a basis of successful and effective work of any company is conformity to continuous changes of market conditions and to its high requirements.
It is necessary to consider that no company can be expanded only by means of new clients’ attraction; this is why it is important to find the individual approach to each already existing client with prospect of turning partner relations in the constant category.
This task is given first of all to the management of the company. To manage – means to foresee, not only to see current tasks but also to forecast its development and to determine solutions in future. Art of managing consists of coordination activity of each member of the company and all the team in one set direction of development. Strength of the chain is determined by its weakest ring. This is why it is extremely important to a company not to have these “weak rings”, in other words each member should realize the importance of his work and have a clear aim and a responsible attitude  to his work results and realize compliance of his own achievements to the total activity of the company.
As a result of the correct management, well picked up command, truly made plan for development, precisely coordinated actions the rule «the successful company consists of successful people» works. Achievement of this purpose - is responsibility of the head of the company. If it is reached, successful business becomes a result. And ARCOM company, in my opinion, is a vivid example of justice of this statement!