Insureblocks Blockchain & Smart Contracts In Insurance

George Alayon – Assistant Director in Insurance Supervision at the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA). George leads a small team whose responsibility is for pushing the insurance agenda of the authority. They oversee the insurance regulatory sandbox and Innovation Hub as well as the supervision of innovative insurers here in Bermuda. In this podcast we discuss the influential role the BMA plays in fostering innovation in the insurance industry.   What is blockchain? Blockchain is a digital ledger where information can be stored, duplicated, and distributed across a network of computers whilst being cryptographically protected. For George, it is the opposite of the traditional way of storing information in a centralised manner where there is no single point of failure. This traditional process also may or may not result in the production of digital assets.   Introduction to the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) The BMA is the sole regulator of insurance companies, banks, trust companies, investments, the Bermud

Richard Brown is the Chief Technology Officer at R3. He leads the team that has invented, designed and brought to market the Corda blockchain platform. He now also leads the team that’s building out their second major product line, called Conclave a platform to securely share and analyse data using confidential computing.   What is blockchain? Previously Richard gave Insureblocks a definition of blockchain from an enterprise perspective. A blockchain like Corda is all about allowing multiple firms in a market to be in sync with each other about facts, they care about such as loans and trade deals. Documents which are shared between firms such as notification of loss for an insurance policy, will invariably evolve over time. The claim gets reviewed, processed and authorised. All those business processes are executed within a firm.  Other firms across the ecosystem that have a stake in those documents need to be in consensus about their status. For Richard, blockchain is all about ensuring that all the partic

David Palmer is the Blockchain Lead and IoT at Vodafone Business, In this podcast we discuss the convergence of blockchain, 5G, AI and IoT (Internet of Things). In addition, we discussed the evolution of internet of things to internet of value and some of the exciting work Vodafone is doing in this space from Smart Cities, to supply chain and to the Energy Web Foundation. David has been working in the telco sector for the last 20 years. He has worked on broadband, ADSL rollout, satellite broadband and for the last 10 years on IoT including combining it with blockchain for the last 4 years.   What is blockchain? Blockchain is a distributed ledger that is shared between different parties. When you combine that with transactions you get to the basis of the first use case of blockchain which is Bitcoin. Bitcoin demonstrated how you can build trust by having transactions written on a shared and distributed ledger where different parties validate the transactions and provide its security through their combined co

Sarah Downy is the Managing Director of FINPRO and co-leads the DART, Digital Asset Risk Transfer, team. In this podcast Sarah shares her insights of the crypto insurance market for 2019 and 2020 along for the need for more education of insurers on the opportunity to serve the need of companies who build blockchain technology and of companies who hold or interact with digital assets.   What is blockchain? As an insurance person, Sarah defines blockchain technology as a technology that stores digital information on a public database with a number of interesting features such as immutability, transparency and traceability. The way blockchain works is that it stores transactions on blocks that are verified and assigned a hash. She also notes that insurers often confuse blockchain technology with crypto and illicit behaviour. A perception that Sarah and her team are working very hard to change.   Overview of the Crypto Insurance Market in 2019 Sarah, describes the crypto insurance market in 2019 as very hesita

Oliver Oram – CEO & co-founder of Chainvine & Dr. Rajiv Mathur – CTO and co-founder of Chainvine walk us through a use case they worked on with HMRC and a number of other participants to reducing friction in international trade. We also discussed in some detail the key challenges around consortiums, IP and openness. A must listen for blockchain initiatives debating through those various points.   What is blockchain? Oliver answers this question by explaining why from a business perspective Chainvine uses blockchain as an engine for its platform whose fundamental principles were to have solid identity, self-sovereign data and security. Rajiv reminds us that there are many different types of blockchains or distributed ledgers. The best examples of blockchains are public ledgers like Bitcoin and Ethereum. Distributed ledgers also come in many different forms with many not actually being blockchains but more as shared ledgers and some who are hybrids between the two. Chainvine takes an agnostic point of view to

David Behrends, Founder & President at Farmer Connect and Managing Partner and Head of Trade at the coffee trading company named Sucafina, joins us along with Diana Kaliff, Business Development Manager at Farmer Connect to discuss coffee on the blockchain. In this podcast we get to learn about how Farmer Connect is helping to not only to digitise their industry but also in bringing transparency and traceability to all players within the coffee supply chain industry from farmers to the end consumer.   What is blockchain? Diana describes blockchain in how they use the technology at Farmer Connect. For them blockchain is a secure database that enables to both securely store and share data between different business partners.   For Dave, blockchain is like the arteries in our bodies: Arteries have thick, strong walls, that make them resistant to high pressure that exists near the heart. This is similar to blockchain’s cryptographic level of security. Each major organ in the human body has their own specia

Dale Chrystie is a Business Fellow and Blockchain Strategist at FedEx who has been in the transportation industry for over 30 years. He also serves as chairman of the Blockchain in Transport Alliance (BiTA) Standards Council, and is a member of the Blockchain Research Institute. In this podcast Dale walks us through the work FedEx is doing in the blockchain space and his view on why he believes the future of blockchain is an open source one instead of a consortium one.   What is blockchain? Dale believes that to effectively define what is blockchain to as wide an audience as possible you need to use basic language and basic concepts. He boils blockchain down to five words: digital, ledger, permanent, transparent, and shared. Blockchain is a digital ledger that is permanent and uses cryptography. Once an entry is added to the ledger it can’t be changed. It’s transparent to all relevant parties and it is shared which is to say it exists on the cloud.   Having said that, Dale is also known for characterising

Ran Zhao is Founder of Blockchain Business Bridge and Innovation Officer at Innovation Centre Denmark, a public organization under Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Higher Education and Science of Denmark. In this podcast Ran walks us through the opportunities blockchain projects have to expand in the Chinese market by sharing her experience of such a project for Danish companies. The innovation Centre Denmark helps Danish companies to build up their innovation and technology development and connect them to international resources. The Blockchain Business Bridge is a non-profit platform for knowledge exchange, and business communication between China, Denmark and the world. The project serves as a launchpad for Danish businesses to take their blockchain activities to the next level.   What is blockchain? To define what is blockchain, Ran took us throough a journey across time. From the Stone Age to now trade and transactions have always been the engine of economic growth. Transactions however hav

Robert Barnes is the co-founder and CEO of TradeIX and the co-founder of the Marco Polo network. TradeIX is the network operator that runs the Marco Polo network a consortium of banks and corporates that transact both domestically and globally. In this podcast Rob, takes us through how Marco Polo is able to drive trade and working capital innovation with blockchain technology.   What is blockchain? Rob, looks at blockchain from a distributed ledger technology (DLT) standpoint because their interest is in peer to peer permissioned transactions. Rob, explains how there are different types of blockchain from the broadcast model, also known as public blockchain, such as Bitcoin, to the peer to peer model like Corda. A blockchain that has financial transactions, needs a peer to peer network that is highly permissione where only the participants to the transaction have visibility over it. For Rob, blockchain is a platform that facilitates the sharing of data between different legal entities that are permissioned

Rebecca Hofmann is Chairman of the Blockchain for Energy Consortium (previously known as OOC Oil and Gas Blockchain Consortium) a collaborative effort of 10 major energy companies to learn, lead and leverage blockchain technology for the energy industry. Additionally, Rebecca is Head of Innovation at Equinor, a Norwegian based global energy company operating in 30 countries, where she focuses on the strategy and innovations dealing with blockchain technology.   What is blockchain? Rebecca looks at blockchain from a business perspective as a back-end technology, with the potential to truly transform how we work. It's a shared digital ledger, that is allowing to have a more seamless way of working with a central source of truth in which business activity can be self-executed, recorded in real time, in a transparent way, with no central point of failure, that's making it more secure.   Challenges of the Energy Industry The energy industry has been facing challenges like never before. There has been extreme p

Ralph Chami, Assistant Director at the International Monetary Fund’s Institute for Capacity Development, isn't a tree hugging hipster. He is a financial economist whose interest in whales has unlocked a well known fact by scientists but not by the general public. A whale during its lifespan is worth $2m in carbon capture and carbon sequestration services, whilst a dead whale's meat is worth $50,000. An African Forest Elephant's tusk is worth $40,000 but an elephant's carbon capture and carbon sequestration services as a living creature is worth $1.75m! Today we have a market for dead creatures but we don't have a market for the services rendered, in terms of carbon capture, by living creatures such as whales and elephants. Join us in this incredible podcast to hear how blockchain can help build a living and regenerative market that not only protects those magnificent creatures but build a circular economy that is a win-win for businesses, governments, local communities and societies around the world.   Wha

Gleb Dudka is a Blockchain analyst at T-Systems and author of the Blockchain Infrastructure Thesis. In this podcast we discuss opportunities for financial services to work with IT service provider in securing the Web 3.0 and exposing themselves to numerous revenue opportunities. We also discuss the differences between proof of work and proof of stake and the role T-Systems play in providing public network infrastructure to the Web 3.0.   What is blockchain? Gleb looks at blockchain from a technical, business and economic standpoint. From a technical standpoint it’s a combination of three key parts: A distributed database that stores information with multiple parties working together on synchronising and keeping the ledger up to date. Smart contracts - scripts and if then functions which allow for executable business logic that sits on top of a shared ledger. Digital assets – tokens which sit on top of blockchain. They play a critical role in incentivising trust-less parties to synchronise and maintai

Genevieve Leveille, Founder and CEO of AgriLedger, a blockchain solution built on  R3’s Corda which has been used to support fruit growers out of Haiti. In this podcast, Genevieve shares with us how their solution enables supply chain through the use of value chain – value transfer and value retention throughout. She also shares how AgriLedger has helped farmers in Haiti get a 750% increase in revenue per kilo of quality mangos sold.   What is blockchain? For Genevieve, blockchain is an infrastructure technology. Blockchain is a mechanism to allow different parties, with different needs, to collaborate and create information exchange. It’s about capturing data in a fashion that is known to be true at the moment of capture. Genevieve is interested in the application of blockchain technology for the food industry. She explains that having food poisoning is usually due to the fact that you don’t know where the food came from, if it had the right refrigeration and other factors which blockchain could address.

Marianne Schoerling, Head of Stakeholder Engagement at Geneva Macro Labs in Switzerland, joins us to discuss how blockchain can support reaching the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Recognising that blockchain is not a panacea to all sustainable development challenges, it is though an important tool to consider when looking at its costs and benefits and potential impact to affect the well-being of communities around the world. Marianne has a wide range of professional experience including working at the UN Environment Programme at with several NGOs.   What is blockchain? Marianne has two answers to the question of what is blockchain. A contextual one and a technical one. From a contextual perspective she would describe blockchain as a chronologically set of arranged digital blocks that will enable the decentralisation of trade. It will allow peer to peer transactions with a reduced need for intermediaries like companies or banks. It entails an entirely new set of preconditions and possibilities for partic

Matthias Goessler, CEO of Ritablock and Jean-Pierre Fischer, Markets Director at Ritablock join us in this Insureblocks podcast to discuss their reinsurance accounting blockchain platform called Ritablock and their experience of integrating it into B3i’s recently launched Fluidity Platform. Matthias has been working in the insurance industry for 25 years and has been Ritablock’s CEO since October 2019. Jean-Pierre has been working in both the insurance and reinsurance industry for the last 35 years.   What is blockchain? Jean-Pierre defines blockchain from a non-technical standpoint. For him the block is the digital information that can be reinsurance accounting information or claimed information. That block can be stored in a public blockchain or as in the case of Ritablock stored within a private network on a database.   Challenges of technical accounting and claims data in the insurance industry The administration process within the insurance industry has a very high admin costs due to too much paper s

Susanne Somerville is the CEO of Chronicled, builders of enterprise blockchain solutions for the life sciences and healthcare industry. In this podcast Susanne introduced us to both Chronicled and to MediLedger whilst sharing some insights on how they are tackling some of the inefficiencies in the US healthcare system. You will also hear about some of her learnings about the differences of launching blockchain solutions based on regulatory compliance compared to one of ROI. Susanne’s prior experience is in the life sciences where she ran supply chain for pharmaceutical and biotech companies like Genentech and Hoffman LaRoche.   What is blockchain? Blockchain is a decentralised ledger that can keep record of transactions or data exchanges. Because of its decentralised nature, no individual party can change the data of the recorded transactions or the rules that blockchain is enforcing. For Susanne it is the magic in this decentralisation and immutability that makes a lot of things possible for enterprises t

Dan Salmons, CEO of Coadjute and John Reynolds, Founder and COO of Coadjute take us through the work they are doing to digitise the real estate industry using blockchain technology. They also explain to us the differences and advantages of using a SaaS (software as a service) blockchain model instead of a consortium one. Coadjute from Coadjute Ltd on Vimeo. Dan Salmons is the CEO of Coadjute. His background is a mix of large scale executive jobs in banks, head of innovation and head of strategy and CEO to a number of innovative fintech companies. John Reynolds is the COO of Coadjute. John has spent the last 20 years working within organisations helping with their digital transformation from Dell, to Fujitsu and Lockheed Martin’s digital arm. What John has learned in 20 years is that digital transformation is partly about technology but it’s really about people’s hearts and minds and business change aspects. John featured in an Insureblocks podcast on the 30th of November 2019 entitled: “Ep.86 – Real estate

Carl Wegner is the CEO of Contour, a blockchain-based open industry platform to create, exchange, approve, and issue Letters of Credit on Corda, R3’s blockchain platform. In this podcast, Carl talks through the challenges the trade finance industry faces in terms of digitisation since 2005 and how blockchain can represent an opportunity to reach that objective. Carl has been working in the Fintech space for the last 30 years in Asia. Twenty years in large banks such as Bank of Boston, Standard Chartered and Deutsche Bank on transaction banking, trade finance and cash management. Ten years in tech working at GT Nexus, at R3 setting up their Asian operations and now at Contour.   What is blockchain? To define what is blockchain, Carl prefers to take it down a notch and instead define what is distributed ledger technology (DLT). DLT is an opportunity for enterprises to manage their own data within their own database instead of via a central database. DLT participants own their data and have a protocol to share

Cecilia Chapiro, is the Investment Adviser & Blockchain Portfolio Manager at UNICEF Ventures. Her focus is on sourcing investments across developing and emerging markets, managing blockchain portfolio of investment as well as other frontier technologies. In this podcast she introduces us to the UNICEF Venture Fund and to 3 startups use case studies: OS City, Atix Labs and StaTwig. Cecilia, is also an entrepreneur, having co-founded Yunus & Youth an organisation working to support the growth of social entrepreneurship.   What is blockchain? Cecilia, chose to define “what is blockchain” by assuming that we’re all at a party and we’re playing the telephone game also known as Chinese whispers. It’s essentially a word game, a communication game within a circle of friends. Let’s imagine that within a circle of 20 friends one person comes up with a first phrase and starts a chain of communication by whispering that phrase to a person on their left. Each person then takes what they heard and continues the chain o

Chris Ferris is an IBM Fellow and CTO for Open Technology and Governing Board Member of Hyperledger. In this exciting podcast we discuss "is open source the future of blockchain"? Open source has increasingly converted enterprises to both use its technology and contribute to its code base. In a similar manner open source in the form of its open governance approach has some important lessons for blockchain networks to analyse and adopt. Have a listen and let us know if you think open source is the future of blockchain?   What is blockchain? At its essence a blockchain is an audit log of successive records where each successive record in that audit log is cryptographically bound to all of the log entries before it. Blockchain can be used as a means of ensuring that there hasn't been any tampering of the contents of that audit log. There are other technologies that are built out around it to give it purpose.   What is open source? The formal definition of open source is that it's software whose source code is