Investors will soon have much wider opportunities quickly and cheaply to check out insurance and investment products on the Internet. In Britain, the Independent Financial Advisers (IFA) association has linked up with Microsoft to develop a public Website that will provide investors with quotes and even allow them to take out policies.

Through the site, which will be called The Exchange, the IFA will provide information on 90 per cent of all British insurance companies. The service will go live in the autumn and is expected to be extended to include mortgages and personal loans as well as pensions and insurance.

The Microsoft package will allow visitors to manage their investment portfolios as well as other savings and debts.

If users tell The Exchange what credit cards, personal loans or savings accounts they hold, it will automatically display the latest interest rates.

Irish financial institutions will be closely watching the link-up and it may not be too long before a similar service is made available here.