ST. LOUIS, November 8, 2012 (Marketwire) - Frank Cirimele, director of products and services at freight bill payment provider Cass Information Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: CASS), has been named to the U.S. Technical Advisor Group as part of the U.S. delegation to the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT), a subsidiary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), mandated to develop programs for improved worldwide cooperation in trade matters.
The UN/CEFACT group is comprised of executives and officials from both the public and private sectors from more than 40 countries. Its work is to make recommendations for the simplification and harmonization of processes, procedures and information flows that would foster growth in international trade and related services.
As a global processor of freight invoices and related information, Cass works extensively with freight carriers and shippers to create efficiencies in electronic invoicing for cross-border movements of goods. "The lack of international standards for electronic invoicing is among our greatest challenges," said Cirimele. "We believe that the UN/CEFACT working groups can positively influence and guide the development and dissemination of data exchange standards, thus reducing global trade friction and making it easier for global trade to grow. The Single Window Interoperability project, being defined under Recommendation 36, is a prime example of the type of work being done in this area by UN/CEFACT."
In addition to working with other UN/CEFACT groups in the past, Cirimele has also served as a private sector expert on the U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration's Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Committee on Electronic Commerce.
Disbursing more than $20 billion in 2011 on behalf of its freight payment clients, Cass is a leading provider of freight audit and payment< services. Cass serves a diverse group of shippers across multiple industries, such as automotive, chemical, consumer packaged goods, food, heavy equipment, OEM, paper and retail industries. Clients include: Dole Food Company, Ford Motor Company, Emerson, Macy's, Restoration Hardware, Toyota and Unilever. Cass publishes several transportation indices including the Cass Freight Index™, which has been a trusted measure of North American freight volumes and expenditures since 1990.
Cass Information Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: CASS) is the leading provider of transportation, utility, waste and telecom expense management and related business intelligence services, disbursing $32 billion annually on behalf of its clients. With total assets of $1.3 billion, Cass is a business process outsourcer focused on invoice processing, auditing and payment services. Cass is uniquely supported by Cass Commercial Bank, founded in 1906. Today, Cass Commercial Bank is a wholly owned subsidiary, providing sophisticated financial exchange services to the parent organization and its clients. Cass is part of the Russell 2000®. More information is available at www.cassinfo.com.