With a string of recent acquisitions, Ebix seems to be taking seriously its goal of becoming the world's leading provider of back-end insurance transactions. The software and e-commerce provider to the insurance industry (71% of revenues came from online insurance exchanges) has been on Fortune's list for the last three years, and was in the top five in 2009 and 2010. Its revenue increased 35% from 2009 to $132.2 million in 2010.
It hasn't all been a cakewalk, though. Ebix has aggressively denounced claims that the company's reports were misleading and recent a lawsuit claiming that it padded earnings by $200,000 -- calling the allegations both false and trivial because of the relatively small amounts in question.
Fortune's annual roster of high performers reveals the promising saplings that are rising in a difficult economy and some stalwarts that deliver year after year.
