Fiserv, Inc., has acquired Xcipio, Inc., a Web-based insurancerating and automation provider, as part of Fiserv's plan to expandin the insurance industry. The acquisition will allow Fiserv toprovide Web-based comparative insurance rates directly frominsurance carriers to producers in real time.

Terry Wade, president of the Fiserv Insurance Group, indicatesthe acquisition is a continuation of Fiserv's dedication to lookfor new ways to expand its presence in the insurance industry."Fiserv will continue to build and acquire the necessarytechnologies to provide the best rating and submission experienceto insurance professionals nationwide," says Wade.

Xcipio, located in East Windsor, Conn., supplies Web-based,real-time rating and automation solutions to insurance agents,brokers, and carriers in Connecticut. It will operate as a divisionof FSC Insurance Solutions, a Fiserv business unit that holds arating business in California, Arizona, and seven midwesternstates.

Robert Meyerson, CEO of FSC Insurance Solutions, notes theacquisition is a significant component of FSC's overall businessdevelopment strategy. "The addition of Xcipio is particularlyeffective when combined with [our] current technology and productportfolio," he says. "Technological synergies between our companieswill allow us to create new rating products built on a hybrid ofmanufactured and real-time rates. In turn, we are able todistribute complete and highly accurate rating solutions at a loweroperating cost and with an accelerated time to market."