Developed with the assistance of executives at key lending institutions, the information and format of the Loan Request Summary mirrors that used by loan review committees to approve loan originations. It provides enough information for a lender to make a preliminary commitment, followed by a firm commitment pending receipt of various due diligence materials.

At the same time, CyberLoan provides much needed security for borrowers and lenders alike. In addition to standard electronic protections, it eliminates from electronic transmission any information which would be considered confidential, allows borrowers to "mask" listings so specific properties or borrowers cannot be identified, and forces lenders to use secure access accounts and passwords to review information.

"CyberLoan 2000 provides tremendous time savings to borrowers and intermediaries," said Spencer Kluesner, chief executive officer of DataMerge. "In the past, a borrower spent weeks pulling together summary documentation, calling lenders to determine their funding criteria, then photocopying and mailing out packages. Often times, they would only then find out that the project couldn't be funded. With CyberLoan 2000, they can complete this entire process in just 30 minutes and never waste time on projects that can't be funded. I see it as the first big step toward real-time commercial real estate lending."

CyberLoan 2000 also helps borrowers secure the best rates and terms by creating a more competitive lending environment. With the system, borrowers have access to far more financing institutions. They can look beyond their local bank for a loan, and can also source lenders for difficult or out-of-the-ordinary properties.

The system also provides time-savings to banks and other lending institutions by solving some common problems:

"CyberLoan 2000 will totally change the way this industry [commercial real estate lending] works," Kluesner said. "Now borrowers can get their money much faster, while lenders can originate those loans faster, with less administrative overhead and less risk. After using the system just once, borrowers and lenders alike will find it difficult to do things the old way."

ACCESS & FEES

DataMerge will charge borrowers and brokers for access to the CyberLoan 2000 system under two different subscription plans. The premium one year subscription costs $650 plus $24.95 per month and allows a user to submit an unlimited number of loan requests and also allows unlimited searches on DataMerge's MortgageSource 2000 on-line database. An alternative "one-time" subscription costs $199 and allows users to submit one loan request to lenders on the system. Users can gain access to CyberLoan 2000 by calling DataMerge at (800) 580-1188 or by visiting website http://www.financingsources.com.

During the initial test phase, DataMerge does not charge "bona-fide" lenders for access to the system. The company, however, anticipates charging fees based on the dollar amount of loans originated through the system.

Lenders have also expressed interest in licensing the CyberLoan 2000 system for inclusion on their private websites. DataMerge is currently working on further development of such a system, which will be called CyberLoan 2000 Executive, but has not yet planned a release date.