The popularity of on-line auctions is spilling over into business-tobusiness purchasing with the launching of a consortium that is seeking a bank partner.

The selected bank would work with three companies that have formed an alliance to let businesses bid for office supplies over the Internet. The partners would benefit by doing business they might not be able to develop on their own.

The alliance is in talks with Bank of Montreal and its U.S. subsidiary, Harris Bank of Chicago, according to John Jensen, president of Analytics Inc., one of the consortium’s three constituents. It is seeking a bank to supply electronic funds settlement services and accounts-payable options, he said.

The alliance is talking to "a few other large U.S.-based banks," Jensen added.

The consortium’s purchasing system, E2E, is based on an on-line bidding network supplied by Interactive Buyers Network International of Ventura, Calif. Interactive Buyers’ Virtual Source Network, started in December, lets suppliers post bids on-line in response to buyers’ requests for quotes.

The other consortium members are Analytics of Madison, Conn., which is to analyze purchases and offer real-time reporting to clients, and PricewaterhouseCoopers, which is to supply technology support and integration of back-office accounting systems. The consortium plans to open a Web site in the next few weeks, E2Ebiz.com.