J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., AmeriCredit Corp. and Wells Fargo & Co. have announced the formation of DealerTrack, a new company they say will jump start the auto industry's conversion to a Web-based auto finance process.

The new company will automate the entire dealer-lender process from financing to daily information sharing, according to officials of the three companies.

Equity financing is being provided to the new company by AmeriCredit, Wells Fargo and J.P. Morgan Chase's e-finance unit, LabMorgan.

Chase Auto Finance, AmeriCredit and Wells Fargo developed the DealerTrack(SM) system, which will be supported by the combined national sales networks of these three founding organizations. This Internet-based B2B system is designed as an open model for all auto dealers and lenders to share the technology, allowing dealers to submit a consumer's credit application online to multiple financing institutions. DealerTrack is already working with several other financial institutions to connect them to the network.

Dealers can also access real time application and contract status information from each online lender on the DealerTrack platform, regardless of whether their application was sent electronically or by fax. Other products will also be offered via DealerTrack to enhance the dealers' day-to-day business management.

The result, according to David A. Coulter, vice chairman at J.P. Morgan Chase vice chairman and head of its retail and middle market business and LabMorgan, is a more efficient workflow process for the dealer, lower processing costs for the lender, and ultimately an easier, faster experience for the consumer.

"The creation of DealerTrack is a major event in transforming the traditional business model into a streamlined, customer-focused e-commerce model for auto financing," Coulter said. "Everything about cars has been modernized, from the design to the assembly line. The final piece is the financing process.

"DealerTrack will modernize the way auto dealers and lenders conduct business by automating the whole process of daily financing information sharing," Coulter said. "To use an appropriate analogy, it will make the process as easy as going from manual to automatic transmission."

"This online system is best-in-its-class with comprehensive feature functionality, and as an open system for all lenders it will revolutionize the auto finance industry, much in the same way that ATM networks revolutionized the banking industry," said Norman Buchan, J.P. Morgan Chase executive vice president and president of Chase Auto Finance. "At Chase Auto Finance, we see DealerTrack as the backbone of our own future infrastructure.

"In creating the functionality of the DealerTrack technology platform, we considered just about every aspect of the dealer/lender relationship," Buchan said. "We believe that DealerTrack is the most comprehensive product of its type in the marketplace. It offers dealers a full range of competitive lending services that they, in fact, asked for."

According to Buchan, the functionality of DealerTrack includes online submission of loan applications to multiple lenders, and the ability to access real time application and contract status from each of several lenders identified by the dealer. Buchan said DealerTrack also serves as a channel to provide daily information between dealers and lenders.

Buchan said the system provides faster turnaround time on credit decisions, resulting in greater customer satisfaction, and offers increased revenue potential for both dealers and lenders, primarily due to the ease of accessibility and the associated streamlining of the process.

"It frees up dealers to spend more time selling and less time with paperwork," Buchan said. "As one dealer put it recently, 'DealerTrack allows me to sell more cars and substantially improve my service'."

According to Buchan, DealerTrack doesn't require complex set-up and training, and requires only a standard PC configuration with Web access. "There is no cost to the dealers," Buchan said. The system has a transaction-based subscription fee for the lenders, according to Buchan.

"We expect DealerTrack to be profitable very quickly because the profit model we have relies on lenders to pay us for each transaction," Buchan said.

Buchan said Chase Auto Finance and AmeriCredit are already using the system, and Wells Fargo will be on the system "in a matter of weeks."

Ten letters of intent have been received from regional banking subscribers and lending institutions, according to Buchan. "We will continue to expand the number of lenders as the demand increases," he said.

Craig Stokum, business manager at DealerTrack, said that at least six of those lenders will be brought into the system during the second quarter of 2001.

"This venture creates an exciting opportunity for three industry leaders in auto finance to join forces, leveraging their individual strengths to enhance the total package being offered to dealers," said Michael R. Barrington, AmeriCredit CEO. "This jointly owned company creates the foundation to Web-enable the auto financing process. We also intend to broaden the base and involve other interested lenders and non-lenders as potential alliance partners in the company."

According to Barrington, the value proposition for dealers will continue to be enhanced as more alternatives and options are incorporated in the DealerTrack.com Web site. "In fact, we'll add other subscribing lenders to the platform, as well as non-lenders to provide services and products geared to streamlining the dealer's office processes," Barrington said.

Barrington said testing of the system has been underway for more than a year. "As a result, we have a product that clearly meets the needs of our dealer customers," he said.

"The consortium considered every aspect of the dealer-lender relationship in developing the functionality and comprehensive technology platform, and more than 4,000 dealers have signed up and are using the DealerTrack system," said Dick Schliesmann, executive vice president at Wells Fargo. "Lenders now have a more effective channel to conduct business with their dealers via the Web, so that many of a dealer's questions, which previously required a phone call or fax to a lender, can now be resolved by accessing DealerTrack. And since the site is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, it will eliminate dealers' dependence on the business hours of the lender's operation. "

The DealerTrack system provides dealer specific financial information, similar to a bank statement, and is updated daily, enabling dealer personnel to keep month-end accounting efforts to a minimum. Other site features enable dealers to access current rates and programs, run payment calculations, compare products, and access customer payoff information. All of the information contained on the system is secure so that users can only view the data which pertains to their business.

About Chase Auto Finance

Chase Auto Finance, a division of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., is among the largest bank originators of auto loans and leases in the U.S. Chase originates approximately $1 billion in auto loans and leases monthly and has more than $24 billion in receivables in its auto finance portfolio. Chase maintains a network of approximately 9,600 auto dealers nationwide.

About LabMorgan

LabMorgan is the e-finance unit of J.P. Morgan Chase. Its purpose is to find, nurture, invest in, and help to commercialize e-finance initiatives that will transform J.P. Morgan Chase and the financial services industry.

About J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.(www.jpmorganchase.com) is a premier global financial services firm with assets in excess of $705 billion and operations in over 60 countries. The firm is a leader in investment banking, asset management, private equity, consumer banking, private banking, e-finance, and custody and processing services.

Headquartered in New York, J.P. Morgan Chase serves 32 million consumer customers and over 5,000 corporate, institutional, and government clients.

About AmeriCredit Corp.

AmeriCredit Corp. is an independent consumer finance company specializing in purchasing and servicing automobile loans.

Using its branch network located across North America and through strategic alliances with select auto groups and banks, AmeriCredit purchases loans made by franchised and select independent auto dealers to consumers who are typically unable to obtain financing from traditional sources. AmeriCredit's managed auto loan portfolio totaled $8.2 billion at December 31, 2000. Visit www.americredit.com for more information.

About Wells Fargo

Founded in 1852, Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified financial services company with $263.5 billion in assets, providing banking, insurance, investments, mortgage and consumer finance from more than 5,700 stores and the Internet (www.wellsfargo.com) across North America and elsewhere internationally.

About DealerTrack

DealerTrack can be found on the Web at www.dealertrack.com.

The company is based in Long Island, and is governed by an independent board of directors.

DealerTrack will be introduced to the entire automotive dealer community at the annual National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Convention in Las Vegas on February 3 - 5, 2001, Booth #2593.