Buyout shows just who is the BOSS
Senior management at life insurance research and software group BOSS has secured control of the group and acquired rivals Life Research.
BOSS management has purchased the 51 per cent stake in the group from Norwich Union and the outright ownership of Life Research after al-most a year of negotiations with both groups.
Senior management at life insurance research and software group BOSS has secured control of the group and acquired rivals Life Research.
BOSS management has purchased the 51 per cent stake in the group from Norwich Union and the outright ownership of Life Research after al-most a year of negotiations with both groups.
The purchases give BOSS a strong position in the life insurance re-search and software market, and a springboard into the provision of independent research.
BOSS managing director Daryl Curie says the purchase of Life Research opens up two distinct opportunities for the group.
Under the ownership of husband and wife team John Butterworth and Jo-anne Loughman, Life Research has concentrated its research on what Curie calls the retail side of the market, providing individual life agents with research on life insurance products. On the other hand, BOSS has directed its marketing efforts to life insurance brokers and dealer groups in what Curie calls the wholesale side of the industry.
"Combined, we have a terrific position in the retail and wholesale markets and with CLERP regulations looming, a strong position what-ever may develop from there," Curie says.
BOSS and Life Research had been independently developing software which will allow electronic communications between advisers and life insurance groups to streamline the proposal process in life insur-ance.
Developments by the two groups will be combined over the next few months and BOSS plans to launch the Elmapp in October.
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