BUFFALO, NY – RSA Solutions Inc. has split into two separate businesses in an effort to focus on growth on both sides, according to Buffalo Business First.

Effective Dec. 1, the new RSA Solutions Inc. will focus on the analytics and relationship selling side, including mortgage and home equity programs for banks and mortgage companies, as well as the direct broker operations through its subsidiary RSA Mortgage Solutions Inc.

The automotive side of the business will be known as Fiserv Automotive Solutions Inc. and was created by merging RSA's automotive division with Fiserv LeMans of King of Prussia, Pa. Both are divisions of Fiserv Lending Solutions.

"There will be a drive to grow both businesses," said Andrew Shaevel, who will continue as president and CEO of RSA Solutions. "Clearly, we're looking to grow both businesses. We see this as a chance to kick back up into a strong gear."

Co-CEO Stuart Angert will now serve as president of RSA Automotive Solutions with Kevin Collins serving as CEO. Collins, who was president and CEO at Fiserv LeMans, will run the King of Prussia operation.

Employees from both groups will continue to work side by side from the Williamsville site as they have been, with 170 dedicated to automotive and 150 on the analytics side. The King of Prussia site has 150 employees working on the automotive side. Shaevel said the Amherst site will see expanded employment as the business grows.

Blaming business conditions in the auto industry and a change in business strategies, Shaevel said revenues and employment have fallen about 40 percent from 2002, when RSA had 600 full and part-time. That's meant repaying some incentives to Empire State Development granted when the 140,000-square-foot facility was built in 2001. Shaevel expects to fill the empty desks with new positions: The site can hold about 1,000 employees.

Shaevel said the company has contacted Ciminelli about subleasing an 18,000-square-foot section of the building that is currently undeveloped.

Founded as Remarketing Services of America Inc. in 1991, RSA changed its name last summer to reflect the expanded scope of its relationships with the financial services industry. Partly as a result of changes in the auto leasing market, it expanded from its core business of automotive remarketing and portfolio management into finance, mortgages and home equity lending, retail and commercial banking, and custom contact center programs.

RSA made a successful pitch to Fiserv in September to validate the prototype model and move forward with the reorganization.

"It's a virtual start-up again," Shaevel said. "We're developing a whole new business model around acquiring, retaining and growing customer relationships with mortgage brokers and lenders."