At Pershing, AnnuityNet Leaps Over Blue Frog
April 28, 2008
In recently announcing the re-launch of Subscribe, its annuity order-entry system, Pershing LLC did not mention that the system’s software provider is now Finetre and not Blue Frog Solutions, Pershing’s vendor since 2005.
But, in an interview, a spokesman for Pershing told Retirement Income Reporter that the clearing and brokerage firm had switched from Blue Frog to rival Finetre's AnnuityNet technology in November 2007. Pershing executives were not immediately available to say why.
Observers who follow the so-called "straight through processing" (STP) initiative for annuities (and probably very few others) may find this change significant.
Annuity order-entry software is a small but crucial link in the chain of technologies that, many hope, will streamline the annuity purchase process. Blue Frog Solutions and Finetre are long-time rivals in this niche, where few have succeeded. Finetre gained financial strength when it was acquired by Ebix, a $285 million e-commerce firm, in September 2006.
At Blue Frog, CEO Brad Levine could not be reached for comment. Doug Massey, vice president of sales and marketing, told RIR, “There were things [Pershing] wanted to do that we couldn’t do at the price they wanted.” Pershing's parent, Bank of New York Mellon, remains an investor in Blue Frog and holds a seat on its board, he said.
Robin Raina, CEO of Ebix, Inc., said switching to Ebix was “the next best step” for Pershing. He said he believed that Pershing “was happy that AnnuityNet is owned by a financially stable company.”
The Subscribe platform allows Pershing’s customers to access annuities from 90% of the top 20 insurance carriers. It is accessible through NetExchange Pro, an online brokerage platform that gives customers a customizable, open architecture suitability questionnaire that complies with the new requirements of FINRA Rule 2821.
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