Old Republic Title is selling its Ramquest title production business and the e-closing platform to Qualia Labs, another title technology provider, as part of a partnership announced between the two companies.
Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“As the speed of technological innovation in our industry accelerates, partnering with Qualia will help us provide an improved experience for both our agents and our insureds,” Carolyn Monroe, president and CEO of Old Republic Title, said in a press release. “It creates a mutually effective path for offering the expertise of Qualia in the rapidly changing technology environment, and the strength of Old Republic Title as a leader in the title industry.”
Qualia is committed to developing efficiencies in the platform and expanding the capabilities of its title production offerings, an Old Republic spokesperson added in a statement.
In 2005, Old Republic, along with LandAmerica Financial Services, purchased minority stakes in Ramquest. LandAmerica would later declare bankruptcy and certain of its assets were acquired by Fidelity National Financial.
But at the time of this transaction, Old Republic owned 100% of Ramquest and the entirety of that stake was transferred to Qualia.
“We believe that this strategic partnership will enable Old Republic Title to be the title insurer best positioned to take advantage of the coming AI wave, and to be at the forefront of our industry’s technological evolution,” Nate Baker, Qualia CEO, said in the press release.
In 2020, Qualia purchased Adeptive Software, the developer of the ResWare title and escrow production technology.
Old Republic International, the parent company of the title underwriter, announced fourth quarter earnings on Jan. 23.
In the fourth quarter, the title insurance segment had pretax operating income of $55.4 million, up from $40.2 million in the third quarter and $43.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2023.
Full year 2024 segment pretax income was $144.1 million, compared with $133.5 million in 2023.
In other title technology news, Closinglock, which provides fraud protection, completed a Series B funding round, raising $34 million.
Sageview Capital led the round, with support from Headline and RWT Horizons.
“This latest funding round — and the 1 million transactions already secured by Closinglock — is another vote of confidence in the work we do,” CEO Andy White said in a press release. “This new funding will unlock the next chapter in our journey to power and protect all real estate transactions while ensuring the secure and seamless flow of funds in every deal.”
Closinglock’s annual revenue has increased over 25 times in the past three years and it has nearly doubled its headcount in its Austin, Texas headquarters to 73 people in 2024.
