From Dynamite to Reinsurance Tech: The Wild Origin Story Behind INTEX Core SystemsIn this episode, we go on an unexpectedly fascinating journey — starting with coyotes and foxes, moving through African farming and UK wildlife, and ending in the heart of what this conversation is really about: insurance, reinsurance, and building modern core systems for carriers.Our guest, Robert Lewis, has one of the most unique backgrounds in the insurance world:🧨 8th-generation insurance lineageHis family first entered the industry because they *couldn’t get insurance* for transporting dynamite into South African mines — so they built their own mutual group, which ultimately grew into a Lloyd’s syndicate.🌍 From Mozambique to London to AustinRobert and his brother bought an insurance company in Mozambique 25 years ago. After struggling to find good software, they hired a young developer and built their own system — which eventually evolved into the modern platform that became Intex.💻 Rewriting over 1 million lines of codeIntex has since been rebuilt for the U.S. market on a Microsoft stack (SQL, C#, Blazor) to avoid proprietary coding traps and make it easy to hire local developers without dependency on offshore or legacy languages.🧾 What Intex actually doesIn this episode, we dig deep into policy admin, reinsurance software, assumed/ceded reinsurance, treaty management, facultative placements, loss corridors, retrocession, regulatory reserves, claims integration, and why Excel is still the “core system” for 55% of insurance professionals.📉 Why legacy core systems are failingWe break down:* Why siloed systems (claims separate from underwriting) break the data chain* Why implementations cost carriers tens of millions* Why external integrators drag timelines for years* Why Intex is offering zero implementation cost and using its own insurance-literate team🏗 The new cohort of core system challengersWe talk about the Austin ecosystem (Guidewire → legacy, Duck Creek → aging guard, Socotra → modern competitor) — and how Intex differentiates through architecture, economics, and reinsurance depth.✔️ Family origins in South African insurance✔️ Building an 8-generation insurance legacy✔️ Starting an insurance carrier in Mozambique✔️ Building and modernizing core insurance software✔️ The difference between proprietary vs. Microsoft stack tech✔️ Reinsurance: ceded, assumed, treaties, facultative, loss corridors✔️ Retrocessions and capital markets✔️ Why Excel is still dominant in the industry✔️ Why most core system implementations never end✔️ The economics of modernizing a carrierIf you're an MGA, reinsurer, carrier, or investor in insurance infrastructure:This episode gives a rare, insider look at the technical, financial, and operational pain points inside the core systems world — and how the next wave of challenger platforms are approaching it.
