News
Framework for the Electronic London Insurance eXchange (FELIX) unveiled by RI3K and Xchanging
30 May 2006
London, Tuesday 30th May 2006: At the ACORD Conference in Las Vegas last week, in a joint session with Xchanging entitled “The Year of the First Insurance Exchange,” RI3K’s Chief Executive Alex Letts introduced FELIX – the Framework for the Electronic London Insurance eXchange.
FELIX is a framework that charts the business processes, messages and enabling market technology services needed to provide an end-to-end electronic insurance exchange. FELIX is specifically not an organisation, but a framework that guides the development of commercial components and services that companies such as Xchanging and RI3k build.
“At a recent meeting with 21 companies from the London market, RI3K and Xchanging were asked to outline a roadmap for delivering all embracing e-commerce and efficiency gains for everyone within the London insurance community,” says Alex Letts. “We were told there should be no ‘one-fits-all’ technology blueprint, and that the watchwords should be Choice, Flexibility and Ease of Entry to dovetail with each individual company’s strategy and capabilities.”
- At the ACORD conference, these watchwords were translated into the principles that will guide the implementation of FELIX:ACORD standards as a foundation and a vision
- Small, achievable, financially justifiable steps
- Multiple access methods
- Inclusive for all the London market
Both RI3K and Xchanging are currently working on several projects, typically with market groups or individual brokers/carriers to drive efficiency gains in all areas of the placement to claims insurance process.
“We have been collaborating closely with RI3K to ensure that the results of our individual project efforts will integrate,” says Jonathan Bradshaw, Managing Director, Implementation, at Xchanging. “What FELIX does is to articulate both a vision and a roadmap to set the direction for future implementation work.”
“Many of the business components for an electronic market infrastructure already exist,” adds Letts. “FELIX considers the whole picture describing the technology services, such a market directory, needed to ensure that the components work together.
The implementation of FELIX will allow every company in the London market - not just a chosen few - to move during 2006 to an electronic solution that completely suits their own business.”
The first implementation of FELIX is on target for a September launch.
About RI3K
RI3K is a technology firm that has specialised in building a trading marketplace for the reinsurance industry for the past six years, delivering a complete electronic trading service, supporting all types and all classes of business, treaty as well as facultative.
The RI3K Trading Service provides the reinsurance market with a fully ACORD, LMP and Contract Certainty compliant solution. It combines four key elements - collaboration, contract management, business process and dataflow - to produce a complete front-office suite that supports reinsurance processes.
The components of the RI3K Trading Service are:
- The Data Management Centre
- The Contract Management Centre
- The Marketplace
- The Secure Auditable Messaging Environment
A community of more than 150 user companies (including 27 Lloyd's Managing Agents) has been established. All these companies have signed the RI3K global interchange agreement and validated the RI3K processes.
RI3K Trading Service has been used by more than 2000 reinsurance professional in 42 nations, over the last four renewal seasons.
RI3K was established in May 2000 and has offices in London, Singapore and Toronto. The company turnover for 2005 was £2.0 million.