Insureblocks Blockchain & Smart Contracts In Insurance

This week we focus on a recently published report claiming that the UK is poised to become a global leader in blockchain. To help us discuss this we are joined by Sean Kiernan– one of the reports key authors and CEO at DAG Global. Sean is a banker, with previous experience in both Switzerland and London, as CEO of Falcon Private Bank’s London office, who at the time were the first regulated crypto-bank. He has recently been involved in setting up DAG Global, a London-based company aiming to become the UK’s first regulated crypto-bank where he is its CEO. Blockchain in two minutes The easiest way of describing blockchain is to imagine a spreadsheet, which everyone across the world can see, in both its current format but also every previous edition. This analogy reflects the decentralization of the ledger and also the immutability of the blockchain technology and can be extended further as formulas can be added to spreadsheets. The addition of formulas reflects automation offered by smart contracts, allowing

For today’s episode we are going to Munich with Bob Crozier, Head of Global Blockchain Centre of Competence at Allianz. Bob shares his views on blockchain’s effect on the insurance industry and sheds some light on the Allianz approach to blockchain. Blockchain in two minutes A blockchain is a shared ledger record of transactions. When everyone in a network agrees a piece of information is correct, it is added to the ledger and the blockchain’s technology links each successive transaction to the previous one. The end result is an unbroken history of transactions that all parties can trust is correct.   Blockchain’s impact on the insurance industry In August 2017 Bob wrote a blog post titled “how blockchain will impact insurance in 2017 and beyond”, where he examines how blockchain is changing how insurance companies operate on a fundamental level and the way insurers and customers relate in a shared economy. This refers to the gradual change in which insurers realise that working together to solve common

For today’s episode we are going to Paris with Laurent Benichou, director of R&D at AXA. Laurent will introduce a famous blockchain case study called Fizzy, AXA’s blockchain flight delay insurance policy.   Blockchain in two minutes A blockchain is a fully distributed database. This means it has no single point of failure and no central managing authority. Blockchain’s technical characteristics, such as its immutability and cryptographic verification, create numerous convenient features including fast and easy payments, smart contracts and the ability to indefinitely store information.   Fizzy Fizzy is a fully automated flight delay insurance policy that runs on the Ethereum blockchain and allows customers to get indemnified as soon as they arrive to their destination. The process is fully automated, with a smart contract deciding whether customers are eligible for indemnification. This means no action is required by eligible customers to claim their indemnity. AXA fully supported Laurent’s idea. Deployin

Today’s episode takes us to New York with Bill Pieroni, President and CEO of ACORD, the global data standard setting body for blockchain in the insurance and related financial services industry. Bill shares his perspective about the importance of the uniform data standard provided by ACORD and the value of investing in blockchain and new technologies.   Blockchain in two minutes A blockchain is a digitized, decentralized ledger of transactions. The first step is a transaction request, such as a claim, contract or endorsement. This request goes over a peer-to-peer network and, after its validity is verified through cryptographic algorithms, it is combined into a new data block which is added to an existing blockchain, thereby completing the transaction. In insurance, the peer-to-peer network can be comprised of insurers, reinsurers, brokers, independent agents, regulators or anyone with a vested interest in the insurance industry.   ACORD ACORD is the global standard setting body in the insurance industry

Welcome to another episode in ours News Flash series, where we share the latest developments in the blockchain space, straight off the press. Today we are joined again by Ranvir Saggu, who previously featured in Ep.8 – Building a Blockchain PoC/Pilot, and we welcome Bradley Brandon-Cross to Insureblocks for the first time. Ranvir is CEO at Blocksure – a blockchain business specifically focussing on implementing blockchain in the insurance space, and is currently focussing on Blocksure OS, which is a platform set to revolutionise the insurance industry. He is a seasoned insurance executive with over 25 years in-depth experience across various composite insurers, with hands-on experience in delivering large transformational programmes at the highest level. Bradley is Managing Director at Commercial & General– a small independent insurance broker which focuses on both commercial and consumer insurance lines. Bradley also has a wealth of experience in insurance, leading GE Capital’s primary insurance business i

This week we look at the exciting journey from Bitcoin to enterprise Blockchain with Burak Yetiskin, a director at Deloitte in Switzerland. Burak, a former cryptologist turned strategy consultant, has been working in consultancy for nine years now. His last three years have been spent working exclusively on DLT and blockchain technology within the financial services and insurance sectors at Deloitte. Blockchain in two minutes Simply put, blockchain is the underlying technology of Bitcoin, where Bitcoin was the first application of distributed ledger technology (DLT) used for transactions, in the form of the first decentralized cryptocurrency. Following from the first deployment of blockchain technology and the success of the first Bitcoin transactions, the technology is being scaled into something much greater than previously imagined. What was originally created to underlie an online currency is becoming a complete distributed solution, revolutionising global business and trade. This revolution is paired

Insurwave, the new marine insurance blockchain platform launched by EY, Guardtime, Microsoft, Willis Tower Watson, XL Catlin, MS Amlin and ACORD and piloted by Maersk has been a recurring theme here at Insureblocks. In a previous episode, Insurwave - a Maersk pilot for marine blockchain insurance, we examined the client’s perspective. In a more recent episode, Insurwave: the complete story with EY, we discussed the process of creating Insurwave. To complete the circle, today we will look at Insurwave from an insurer’s perspective. For today’s episode we were lucky enough to have two speakers, Madeline Bailey, Head of Strategic Initiatives at MS Amlin, and Hélène Stanway, Digital Leader at XL Catlin. Blockchain in two minutes Blockchain is a distributed ledger that allows users to share data in real time in a secure and immutable way. This data can be related to assets, for example the location of a vessel, or it can be a smart contract, a piece of code set to execute when a set of specified parameters is

In one of our previous episode, Insurwave - a Maersk pilot for marine blockchain insurance, we introduced Insurwave, a new marine blockchain insurance platform launched by EY, Guardtime, Microsoft, Willis Tower Watson, XL Catlin, MS Amlin and ACORD and piloted by Maersk. This week we are joined by Shaun Crawford, Global Insurance Sector Leader at EY and one of the founders of Insurwave. We will be discussing the complete story of Insurwave, from Proof of Concept to launch.   Blockchain in two minutes A blockchain is a series of blocks of continuous records, where a previous block is effectively a cryptographic copy of the information from the preceding block. The blockchain is managed autonomously using a peer to peer network, meaning that the whole network will know if a peer makes a change to the blockchain. Therefore, everything has to be authenticated. This leads to a live, immutable audit trail.   Insurwave Insurwave is the first product of Insurwave Ltd, a joint venture between EY and Guardtime, a bl

Welcome to the first episode of our new News Flash series, where we share the latest developments in the blockchain space, straight off the press. In today’s episode we have Ryan Rugg, Global Head of Insurance at R3 and a regular speaker at Insureblocks. R3, which featured in one of our previous episodes (R3 – The blockchain banking consortium) started in 2015 as a consortium of financial institutions that joined forces to test blockchain solutions. Three years later, their hard work has culminated in an exciting new project and we are proud to announce the release of Corda Enterprise to the insurance industry. Corda Enterprise is R3’s commercial offering that brings greater enterprise capabilities to the Corda platform. It builds upon Corda’s functionality, enhancing availability, security and performance.   Corda Corda, the blockchain created by R3, is the only blockchain that has been designed and built specifically for business. Corda’s focus on privacy, security and scalability distinguish it from oth

Creating a decentralised insurance model with blockchain & smart contracts - Etherisc This week we are taking a broader look on how blockchain can transform the insurance sector. Specifically, we will consider how blockchain and smart contracts can be used to create a decentralised insurance model. With us we have Stephan Karpischek, co-founder of Etherisc. Etherisc is building decentralised insurance applications on the Ethereum blockchain. They began in 2016, pioneering a flight delay application utilising a public blockchain. Currently they are developing over 20 products and will soon release a product covering hurricane insurance for Puerto Rico. Etherisc’s vision is much larger than simply developing its own applications. It is building an open and free protocol for decentralised insurance so that companies can develop their own insurance products using smart contracts.   Blockchain (and Ethereum) in two minutes On a first level, a blockchain is a data structure. On a larger scale, blockchain is an e

Bonus episode: diversity in blockchain As a man of mixed origins and as a father of two little daughters I am concerned by the lack of diversity that we find in blockchain and in the insurance space. To help me tackle this important issue I had the great pleasure to have Ryan Rugg (previously on Ep. 6 - R3 - the blockchain banking consortium), Head of North America for R3, and Madeline Bailey, Head of Strategic Initiatives at MS Amlin. At MS Amlin, Madeline is head of strategy and innovation, charged with leading the blockchain efforts on the Insurwave platform, whilst Ryan spearheads the insurance effort at R3, working alongside other B3i collaborators on the Corda platform.   Is there a diversity problem in blockchain? Between Ryan and Madeline, both recognised that diversity is vital for collaboration amongst teams and across the industry within such radical innovations such as blockchain. By ensuring that all individuals are heard equally, all perspectives can be included making the sector stronger.

An Italian Commercial Insurance Blockchain Pilot Here at Insureblocks we love hearing about interesting real-life insurance blockchain pilots. So we were very excited to hear about the launch of Generali’s quotation process blockchain pilot. To learn more about this pilot we had the great pleasure of having Marco Boni, Group Head of Operational Excellence & Transformation at Generali, who is “genetically in love with technology”, join us for a chat on Insureblocks to take us through the journey they went through in building this Italian commercial insurance blockchain pilot. 2 Minute Definition of Blockchain Instead of blockchain, Marco preferred to define what is DLT (distributed ledger technology). Small note to remember is that blockchain is a type of DLT. DLT is a technology that allows the storage of information in a distributed way. You can write on this distributed database, in an encrypted immutable way, after reaching a consensus amongst the participants. This technology enables you to increase the t

B3i: building a blockchain digital network of trust  B3i, the blockchain insurance industry initiative, often comes up in episodes on Insureblocks. Greg Crow gave us an introduction to B3i in Episode 2 from an XL Catlin stand point. So we were very excited when we had the opportunity to talk to B3i’s CEO, Paul Meeusen.  In this exciting episode we discuss not only how blockchain can help build a digital network of trust but also hear about why B3i chose to replace the IBM Hyperledger Fabric with R3’s Corda to become their new blockchain platform.   2-minute definition of blockchain Paul describes blockchain as a Cloud + +. What are the “+ +”? Cloud computing is about sharing. Sharing reinsurance contract needs to be done in a safe manner. Safety whilst sharing on the blockchain is secured through cryptography to safe guard data so that only the parties who are part of the contract can see it. Another element of the “+ +” is the smart contract capability, which enable us to codify business rules for the shar

Ep.14 – Blockchain use cases outside of insurance For this week’s podcast we go out of the insurance world to explore some interesting blockchain use cases and pilots in other industries. In episode 6 we had Ryan Rugg introduce us to R3 the banking blockchain consortium. But for this one we wanted to go out a little bit further. As our guide for this journey we had the pleasure of having Lee Brenner, Chief Engagement Office at the Global Blockchain Business Council, live from Pennsylvania!     2 Minute Definition of Blockchain Blockchain technology is a decentralised database that is connected together to create a permanent unchangeable record of data that is loaded onto blocks. Those individual blocks of data are connected to other blocks of data (ie. chained together) on this database. Blockchains act as global notary. Eliminates the middle man by creating a system of trust and a level of confidence between the actors on the system allowing for P2P transactions.   The Global Blockchain Business Council T

Blockchain & Trade Finance This week’s podcast is all about blockchain in trade finance. We were very lucky to have Marilyn Blattner-Hoyle, Head of Supply Chain and Trade Finance at AIG. In this episode she will share with us the pilot they ran with Standard Chartered and with TradeIX.   2 Minute Definition of Blockchain Marilyn, approaches blockchain as a layman, so the way she looks at it, is blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, which simply put is a distributed database or ledger that can record and track transactions in a secure environment with optimal transparency. Cryptography underpins the way this is done. The way AIG, and particularly Marilyn’s trade finance team look at blockchain is how it can be used to providing solutions to their clients by creating simpler ecosystems for allowing trade finance to occur.   What is trade finance? Simply put, trade finance is the facilitation by banks, financial institutions and other funders to support sellers selling goods and services and

Insurwave - A Maersk pilot for marine blockchain insurance Too often in the insurance industry we entertain in navel gazing by looking at what we do and what our competitors do, instead of really focusing on who keeps our lights on… our customers. So, for this week’s podcast we look at a customer’s perspective of marine insurance by talking to Lars Henneberg, Head of Risk Management at the logistic and transportation giant Maersk. Maersk is the pilot customer of a new marine blockchain insurance platform called Insurwave that was launched by EY, Guardtime, Microsoft, Willis Tower Watson, XL Catlin, MS Amlin and ACORD. As a special treat I was joined by Marilyn Blattner-Hoyle, Head of Supply Chain and Trade Finance at AIG as my co-host.   2 minute definition of blockchain For Lars, blockchain is a technology to share real time data. It gives perfect visibility to the participants. It can conduct a number of transactions simultaneously across a multiparty value chain.   What is marine insurance and how does

Bonus episode - "Pulse" episode of blockchain in insurance This is an exciting “Pulse” episode where we get a sense of what the insurance industry feels about Blockchain. In this episode I interviewed 12 delegates who attended the Blockchain for Insurance summit here in London on the 22ndand 23rdof June.   Each delegate was asked to answer two questions: Is Blockchain all hype? Is the insurance industry ready to embrace blockchain?   We would like to thank the following participants for participating to this “Pulse” episode, in order of appearance: Benoit Abeloos, Policy Officer, Blockchain, FinTech, Startups and Innovation at the European Commission Susan Holiday, Principal Insurance Specialist at IFC - International Finance Corporation Dante Disparte, Founder and CEO at Risk Cooperative / Co-Author Global Risk Agility and Decision Making Martijn Minkenberg, Dutch Association of Insurers Ruth Cameron-Errington, Deputy Global Claims Operations Manager at SCOR Mark Cook, Global CIO at Mar

Building a blockchain insurance ecosystem in Singapore For this week’s Insureblock’s episode we headed to Singapore to meet an interesting startup, called Inmediate.io. which utilises blockchain and smart contracts. We had the pleasure of interviewing its CEO, Otbert de Jong and CTO, Nelius Strydom. Inmediate is the first Singapore digital broker. They operate a b2C platform for retail insurance and operate a b2b insurance technology distribution business. They have specialised in building a connectivity platform with insurance companies by creating an API network that enables them to offer real time processing of insurance. Now they are aiming to build a new age ecosystem by utilising blockchain and smart contract technology where insurance can be sold in a quicker and more efficient manner.   2 Minute Definition of Blockchain Blockchain is a digital wallet that allows you to store information and validate that information in a decentralised way. The traditional model in cryptocurrencies is one that allow

RiskBlock Alliance This week’s Insureblock’s episode takes us to Pennsylvania, USA, where we had the chance to interview Christopher McDaniel,  President of the RiskBlock Alliance; an industry-led consortium that collaborates to unlock the potential of blockchain across the insurance industry.   2 Minute Definition of Blockchain For Chris, there are three fundamentals to blockchain: Ubiquitous data – all data is synchronised between the participants behind the scenes. Immutable – data cannot be erased. It is a perfect audit trail with a one source of truce for the participants using the blockchain. Smart contracts – the capability of saying if a situation exists do something on the blockchain. It is a way of automating different processes that may exist on the blockchain.   What is the RiskBlock Alliance The Institute is an organisation that has been around for a hundred years in the property and casualty space. It provides education and research in that space. 18 months ago, the board of the Institu

Blockchain’s disruptive potential For this week’s Insureblock’s episode we were extremely lucky to catch up with Magda Ramada Sarasola, Senior Economist at Willis Towers Watson, to discuss the disruptive potential blockchain can have in the insurance industry both now and in the future.   2 minute definition of blockchain Technically the definition is that it is a shared distributed ledger, whose core concepts are that it is a way for people that don't know each other and don't trust each other but need a way to transfer value between each other. A good example of that is Bitcoin – the first blockchain technology used for transferring value without anyone actually overseeing that market. For this to successfully happen you need three things: The value being transferred arrives to its intended recipient without it being intercepted or modified. This a role which has traditionally been occupied by clearing houses or trusted partners. In a blockchain world you don’t need them You have to make sure that wh