Finetre Corporation, a provider of e-commerce technology solutions for the annuity industry, has agreed to develop an online fixed annuity sales platform jointly with Beacon Research, a source of fixed annuity data and a developer of related Web-based search and reporting software tools. The new platform will combine Beacon Research's AnnuityNexus database with Finetre's AnnuityNet Platform to improve research capability and client suitability to the fixed annuity sales process.

Scheduled for release in 2006, the new platform will enable salespeople to select appropriate fixed annuity products for their clients and then transact the sale electronically. It will include front-end software to search comprehensive profiles of a distributor's fixed annuity product line, allowing the specification of basic or detailed selection criteria. After product selection, the system will produce a package that includes a proposal summarizing all criteria. Data will be transferred to the application and any required forms. Rules will be vetted against field-entered data to simplify the process for the producer and minimize mistakes in transactions. The platform will facilitate proper supervision of every fixed annuity sale by enabling compliance and suitability monitoring during the transaction and producing related reports. Suitable transactions will be submitted to the carrier electronically.

Both insurance carriers and distributors have expressed interest in the sales platform because it can reduce errors, compliance-related liability, and cost while speeding up the processing of applications and commissions.