EDS Corp, the US outsourcing giant, has announced the acquisition of a specialized, privately held, life insurance software outfit called Solcorp, from Toronto in Canada. Solcorp currently trades in several countries besides its big Canadian presence, and its speciality is in providing cross boarder, cross platform software for the life insurance industry. Financial terms were not disclosed but Solcorp turned over $37m last year and with its 350 staff, it will become a wholly owned subsidiary of EDS. Solcorp CEO Steve McKeown said his company needed to tap into the resources available through EDS to boost its international presence. EDS said the reasoning from its own perspective was the intellectual capital acquired, strengthening its software development efforts. As regulatory barriers fall and the pace of consolidation in the insurance market quickens, there is more and more scope for global insurance packages capable of bridging currencies and languages.
