PPL to retire V3 after ‘Next Gen’ launch; Ebix shifts focus to PlacingHub

London market electronic placement platform PPL is set to decommission the original PPL V3 platform and shutdown the Ebix system at the end of the year, following the launch of the ‘Next Gen’ platform in March.

Placing Platform Limited will issue a communication to market firms with detailed instructions and guidance for what they should do to prepare for shutdown, but have advised all users of PPL V3 to accelerate their cutover onto ‘Next Gen’.

Effective October 1, new placements on the old platform (PPL v3) will no longer be available. Starting December 15, the option to initiate endorsements on PPL v3 will be disabled. By December 31, user access to PPL v3 will be revoked, leading to its decommissioning and deletion of all data held.

The announcement marks the end of Ebix Europe’s seven-year tenure as the creator and provider of the original London market electronic placement platform PPL. Ebix Europe’s platform has helped over 20,000 users place millions of risks, firm orders and endorsements to date.

Moving forward, Ebix Europe plans to concentrate on advancing the independent growth and innovation of its “new and improved” electronic placing solution PlacingHub, without limitation.

Placing Platform Limited CEO, Joe Gordon said: “This is an important step for PPL and for the market. Most obviously, it removes the need for users to be trained on both platforms and for underwriters to have to respond to placements received on two platforms. It also removes the significant expense associated with running two complete and complex IT platforms, and this will allow us to invest the money saved in enhancing Next Gen. And finally, it allows the PPL team to turn its entire focus onto the opportunities associated with extending PPL for digital integrations, Blueprint 2 integration, and the data-first market.”

Ebix Europe vice president Pete Smyth said: “We finally have the freedom to launch our vision for the London market, and are very excited about that opportunity. We are extremely proud to have successfully pioneered the London market’s exciting journey into electronic placement, and supported its adoption over the last seven years. The market has undergone significant changes during this time, including the challenges of the global pandemic, which rapidly accelerated the digitisation of placements in our market.

“Throughout it all we have been dedicated to channelling more business through the London Market as efficiently as possible. We have a proven track record of successful delivery and support, and are looking forward to the freedom to take an unbounded approach to the innovation and growth of electronic placement in the future.”

Smyth added: “Competition is an opportunity and creates the ideal conditions for innovation, to the benefit of the Market. That is why we are delighted to be now independently enhancing the digital transformation of our sector and bringing our full strength and expertise to the table, offering market participants a seamless and painless transition onto our platform and accelerate the journey to data-first.

I’d like to thank the market for the tremendous support we have enjoyed over the last seven years and look forward to that continuing long into the future.”

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