E-commerce is the beating heart of insurance trading today, and commercial lines is no exception

At every level of the insurance value chain, businesses are attempting to exploit the possibilities of new technology, to meet changing customer requirements and to lay their bets. Manufacturers are developing new products on new platforms, marketplaces are springing up and growing, brokers and other intermediaries such as aggregators are seizing the opportunities, and direct players are taking their first tentative but significant steps.

But nothing is decided yet. Like the technology that drives it, commercial e-trading is in its infancy and is changing by the day. In this special issue, Insurance Times lays bare the journey to e-trading, the state of play, and the future possibilities.

See the related stories, below right, for more from this month's The Knowledge.