CHARLOTTE, N.C., July 25 /PRNewswire/ --
To meet the growing online demand for insurance products and services, First Union Corporation (NYSE: FTU), announced today the acquisition of Professional Direct Agency, Inc. (Pivot), which operates Pivot.com.
Pivot, purchased from ilife.com, is a leading insurance website providing private labeling, insurance fulfillment, and customer service to both businesses and consumers.
"By joining First Union, Pivot is poised to grow into the online insurance solution with cutting edge distribution and customer services," said David de Gorter, president of First Union Insurance Group, a unit of First Union's Capital Management Group. "It allows us to provide turnkey insurance solutions through the Internet to other financial services companies that are interested in private-label websites offering insurance products to their customers."
Pivot, a nationally licensed agency, was founded in 1998 by insurance executives David Florian and Lou Hensley with the goal of distributing insurance products and services more cost effectively online rather than through traditional channels. Pivot's e-commerce business model currently provides insurance carrier fulfillment services, conservation services and website private labeling to insurance companies, financial institutions, affinity groups, traditional agencies and other business partners.
"Pivot will now be able to enhance its service offerings to our current business clients as well as build on our capabilities to grow our B2B business," said the co-founders. "We are delighted that such a leading bank insurance organization as First Union recognizes the tremendous growth potential in the online insurance business."
The e-insurance business is estimated to grow from approximately $1.9 billion in 1999 to more than $11 billion in 2003, according to industry researchers, while industry surveys estimate 78 percent of all Internet users currently research their insurance needs online.
Florian and Hensley will remain co-presidents of the Columbus, Ohio-based company.
"David and Lou are seasoned insurance professionals who provide experience and leadership to grow First Union's e-insurance business in this booming online market," de Gorter said.
Pivot's business model provides partnering clients with three key insurance services -
Insurance carrier fulfillment services: Provides companies with the
necessary national coverage and licensed agents to complete the sales
process - online or offline -- at reduced cost with better close rates,
improved reporting and excellent customer service.
Website private labeling: Allows partnering businesses to quickly enter
the e-insurance marketplace with a Web-enabled insurance center. This
allows businesses to offer choice content, financial planning tools,
instant online comparison quotes and quality insurance products while
retaining their own brand identity.
Conservation services: A customer retention program that empowers
insurance companies to retain lapsing policyholders to leverage their
existing customer base while avoiding new acquisition costs.
"Our purchase of Pivot shows our commitment to First Union's recently announced strategic repositioning to focus on high-growth businesses and is a natural fit with our Internet strategy of investing in firms that match our core business," said de Gorter.
First Union Insurance Group (FUIG) is a unit of the Capital Management Group, First Union's asset and wealth management activities. FUIG operates one of the most comprehensive bank insurance operations in the country, serving more than 16 million customers through a sales force of 4,000 licensed agents. First Union Corporation (NYSE: FTU) is a leading provider of financial services to 15 million retail and corporate customers with $258 billion in assets and stockholders' equity of $14 billion at June 30, 2000.
(Ilife.com (Nasdaq: ILIF) operates a portfolio of personal finance e-channels, including banking, investing, taxes and small business financing. Its flagship site - bankrate.com - is a leading aggregator of more than 100 financial products, including mortgages, credit cards, automobile and home equity loans, money market accounts, CD's, checking and ATM fees, and online banking fees.)
Visit the Pivot(TM) website at www.pivot.com .
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