The London Market's trusted secure trading internet system, set up by the industry-owned organisation for global e-commerce, Worldwide Insurance E-commerce (Wise), has been put out to tender.
BT pulled out of its arrangement to manage the service that was to have underpinned the system. US-based Berkeley Information Services was said by market sources to have taken over the contract.
Wise merged its data standards side on a global basis with the Association for Cooperative Operations Research and Development (Acord) on July 1. Acord facilitates and develops the use of standards for the insurance and financial services industries.
It is the non-standards part of the Wise operation that is out to tender. A market conglomerate such as Wise was not thought the most suitable vehicle to run those services.
Broker Aon is one of the major players in the trusted trading system. Aon executive Bill Oram said: “We are seeking to find someone who will take over and run those services. That is an ongoing process and we should have a resolution to that tender document in the next few weeks.”
BT's global broadband operation, BT Ignite Solutions, said in May that to continue would not be commercially viable.
BT was also concerned that non-London market insurers had failed to support the system, which has brought 47 users on board in 18 months.
Wise was set up in June 1999 from the Reinsurance and Insurance Network (Rinet), the London Insurance Market Network (Limnet) and the World Insurance Network (WIN). It has more than 100 members globally.
Lloyd's business conduct review department says the market must adopt “a prudent standard to avoid potential reputational and financial risks, and other inherent risks associated with using the internet.”
