In November 2026, Brokerslink launched ekko, a member platform for finding specialist expertise and coordinating work on multinational insurance programmes. The launch took place at the network’s Istanbul conference, held from 4 to 6 November.
The platform is a marketplace for finding capabilities across the network and shared workspaces called Deal Rooms. It did not report how widely members are using the platform or identify results for employee benefits placements.
Discovery is the first test
A multinational broker may need to find someone who understands a particular product, employer population or regulatory setting in a country where it has limited direct experience. A directory helps if it identifies the person who can answer the question, the work that person actually does and when the information was last checked. A large geographic footprint does not, by itself, tell a client whether a broker can handle a group medical renewal, a disability claim escalation or a captive reporting request in a given market.
The marketplace could make those distinctions easier for network members to see. For benefits work, a useful profile would describe the capabilities available locally, the person who owns them and any limits on the employer groups or contracts the team can serve. The same country may need separate contacts for expatriate cover, local benefits and multinational financing. A member directory is most useful when it can help the lead broker make that distinction without several rounds of referrals.
Follow the handoff through to the client
Deal Rooms are intended to help members work together on an opportunity. The operational question is what happens after a lead broker invites a specialist to help. A defined owner should decide what information is shared, set deadlines for responses and confirm who will review the advice before it reaches the employer. In a multinational renewal, the lead broker should be able to show what was confirmed locally and what remains uncertain. That record is particularly valuable when markets have different renewal dates or the employer is comparing several providers.
Benefits buyers should also ask what types of information can be used in a shared workspace. A country-level plan specification may be sufficient to find an adviser. Individual claims, medical details and employee records call for different controls and may not be needed at the referral stage. Ask who can invite participants, how access ends when a referral closes and how decisions can be traced. These are questions for due diligence; the launch coverage does not establish how the platform handles every use case.
Ask for a benefits case and a measure of improvement
ekko replaces the former member platform Agora and further development is planned for 2027. The practical test for buyers is whether the new system improves the work they receive. Useful measures include time to identify a qualified specialist, time to deliver a usable response and the share of requests that need to be referred again.
For brokers, tracking only accounts created or searches made would miss the client outcome. Compare the process with prior referrals of similar complexity, and distinguish benefits requests from other lines. For a multinational employer, a short case from a market it actually operates in will be more informative than a network-wide adoption figure. Ekko gives Brokerslink a way to put more of its network’s knowledge within reach. Whether it improves benefits placements will depend on the quality of the information, the reliability of local handoffs and the results clients can verify.
Source : Brokerslink — Istanbul global conference programme and dates
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