Cox Automotive acquires F&I Express

Cox Automotive Inc. has acquired F&I Express, an F&I technology company it has had a minority stake in since 2013, Cox said in a statement on Monday.Intersection Technologies Inc., doing business as F&I Express, also owns two other digital solutions. The company now will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Cox, though it will retain its employees and remain at its location in Grapevine, Texas.The acquisition will give Cox full ownership of F&I Express, which connects dealers with F&I product providers. Through F&I Express, dealers can access product rates, generate contracts and forward contracts to the providers.Cox also will own the company's two other tools: Express Recoveries, a digital tool to streamline the cancellation and recoveries process of F&I products, and Express Digital Media, a platform that connects digital retailers with F&I providers on pricing and provides digital content.Cox Automotive had worked closely with F&I Express to launch the tools, according to Cheryl Miller, vice president of lender solutions at Dealertrack, Cox's F&I software company."We saw the great work and solution sets that they're bringing to market," Miller said. "There is no doubt that with the synergies that we see in the digital era, F&I Express will play an integral part in helping us move that forward."The companies would not disclose the financial terms of the acquisition. F&I Express has worked with Dealertrack since August 2016. The collaboration gave Dealertrack's dealership clients access to the F&I Express network, a combined network of 130 F&I product providers. Today, that partnership maintains a network of more than 160 F&I product providers.F&I Express CEO Brian Reed said at the time of the partnership that Dealertrack and F&I Express would remain separate from an operations standpoint. Even with the acquisition, there are no plans to shift the company's operations, though Reed said linking to Cox gives F&I Express access to deeper resources and a broader talent base."Whenever a Cox company needs access to F&I providers, we are those pipes to those providers," Reed said.

Cox Automotive acquires F&I Express

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