JOHNS CREEK, GA--(Marketwired - Apr 13, 2017) - Ebix, Inc. (NASDAQ: EBIX), a leading international supplier of On-Demand software and E-commerce services to the insurance, financial, e-governance and healthcare industries, today announced that Beazley plc is the latest insurance carrier to join the EbixExchange accounting platform hosted by Ebix Europe, the electronic messaging communications specialist for the global re/insurance market.

Using ACORD standards, this platform adds transparency, accelerates the accounting and settlement process and permits Beazley to receive and respond to electronic back office transactions (EBOT) messages, regardless of location, to and from other insurance brokers and carriers.

Beazley was introduced to EBOT following a trial of the Willis Accounting platform, an application tool launched jointly by Ebix Europe and Willis Towers Watson in 2015. The key benefits of the accounting platform to insurance entities include faster time to market, heightened internal financial controls and a reduction of unallocated cash.

"Beazley worked closely with Ebix Europe to implement EBOT messaging with participating brokers, providing a common market gateway solution for E-accounting with brokers, through our participation in the Ruschlikon UK Implementation Group," commented Saad Jassani, Underwriting and Claims Operations, Beazley.

"This offers us a standardized business process that can be rolled out across our global credit control teams in the UK, USA, Germany and Singapore," Jassani added. "The new process will allow upfront query and resolution on payment amounts prior to funds being transferred by the broker, helping reduce our unallocated cash. The first broker that we are using this service with is Willis, with Guy Carpenter and JLT among other brokers we will engage with in 2017."

"Beazley saw the potential to improve internal processes, remove unallocated cash and receive money in a quicker fashion. EBIX plans to launch additional functionality to include connections with the entire universe of insurance brokers and address ways to integrate data with back office systems to fully automate these processes," said James Pring, head of Sales, Ebix Europe.

Since launch of the Willis Accounting platform in 2015, the number of insurance carriers able to receive EBOT messages has grown from 50 to 850. In that time, Willis Accounting has contributed more than 150,000 technical accounts.

"We are pleased with growth in the number of insurance entities that leverage our platform to drastically reduce inefficient and costly accounting practices during settlement of their technical and financial transactions," Pring added.

Any carrier on the Willis Accounting platform that wants to trade electronically with any other Ruschlikon-enabled organization can do so by moving to full e-accounting and requesting simple promotion to the EbixExchange platform. At that point, EbixExchange is the carriers' message management tool (MMT) to respond to EBOT and electronic claims office transactions (ECOT) messages from any enabled broker. This similar user interface allows a seamless transition for users when switching from Willis Accounting to EbixExchange.

The Ruschlikon Initiative connects participants in the re/insurance industry to conduct back office processes such as technical accounting, claims and settlement, using ACORD message standards for re/insurance and commercial business.

About Ebix, Inc.

A leading international supplier of On-Demand software and E-commerce services to the insurance, financial and healthcare industries, Ebix, Inc. (NASDAQ: EBIX) provides end-to-end solutions ranging from infrastructure exchanges, carrier systems, agency systems and risk compliance solutions to custom software development for all entities involved in the insurance industry.

With 40+ offices across Brazil, Singapore, Australia, the US, UK, New Zealand, India and Canada, Ebix powers multiple exchanges across the world in the field of life, annuity, health and property & casualty insurance while conducting in excess of $100 billion in insurance premiums on its platforms. Through its various SaaS-based software platforms, Ebix employs hundreds of insurance and technology professionals to provide products, support and consultancy to thousands of customers on six continents. For more information, visit the Company's website at www.ebix.com.

About ACORD (www.acord.org)

ACORD (Association for Cooperative Operations Research and Development), founded in 1970, is a global, nonprofit organization serving the insurance and related industries.

ACORD facilitates fast, accurate data exchange and more efficient workflows through the development of electronic standards, standardized forms, and tools to support their use.

Implementing ACORD Standards has been shown to improve data quality and flow, increase efficiency, and realize billion-dollar savings to the global industry. ACORD members worldwide include hundreds of insurance and reinsurance companies, agents and brokers, software providers, financial services organizations and industry associations.