Today, Lloyd’s and Velonetic have announced that the cutover to phase one digital services, scheduled for a target date of October 2024, will be postponed to ensure safety and ample market readiness. Both the Velonetic Board and shareholders, and the Council of Lloyd’s are supportive of this decision.
John Neal, CEO of Lloyd’s said: “As we progress with delivery of phase one, we’ve faced challenges which have impacted our timelines, particularly with testing. Market testing of the new platform is progressing but running eight weeks behind schedule, driven by onboarding and integration issues. We’re confident we can resolve defects quickly, and encourage the market to maintain momentum with their own testing schedules.
“Both Velonetic and Lloyd's are committed to ensuring a secure cutover to Blueprint Two phase one digital services for all market participants and system vendors. In light of these setbacks, it is appropriate to postpone the cutover.
“We will only cutover to phase one digital services once it is safe to do so, with a robust cutover, rollback and contingency plan in place, and that we are satisfied a number of key activities have been completed or are near completion. Only then will we decide a new cutover date, informed by market feedback.”
These key activities include:
- Completing the technology build safely
- Maintaining testing momentum, as well as training and onboarding users
- Providing assurance to market participants
- These activities will enable internal governance and decision making to sign the new agreement and notify the regulator.
Velonetic and Lloyd’s, with input from the market associations, are working through a revised plan and testing schedule, setting out the key activities that will contribute to a safe and successful cutover. The new plan will be shared as it is developed.