Hosted by Elmore Insurance Brokers in their Lime Street offices last week, a select group of senior insurance experts attended an exclusive roundtable event to debate the issues of Blockchain and its impact on insurance intermediation. Participants represented the views of buyers, Blockchain start-ups, intermediaries and capital providers – sharing their user case experience and discussing the technical opportunities and challenges.
The participants were: Head of Insurable Operational Risks at Standard Chartered Bank, CEO of Blocksure, independant blockchain consultant and London market advisor, Head of Innovation for Tokio Marine Kiln, and Elmore’s Managing Director and Head of Operations.
Below are the main discussion points and the conclusions the group reached.
Current Issues and Advantages of Blockchain Technology
Transaction automation and the future value of brokers
Brokers need to add value to both the buyer and the capacity provider if they are to survive. Briefly, those currently operating as a postbox will be forced out by the new technology. Blockchain technology will make sure that brokers become either super commoditised or super specialised, there’s no space for those stuck in the middle.
The expectation is that all business in broking offices will be transacted and managed on mobile devices, removing the future need for PCs. The key differentiation will come from offering risk management services where the broker, as an independent party, can assess the risk and provide the best insurance coverage. The Blockchain solution really suits this approach and also enables corporates to digitise their own core processes and information systems. Initial user cases have indicated that a digitised form of insurance purchasing works really well. This will mean that the operational support provided by a traditional broker will become less relevant. Holding loss records for example will no longer be a valuable feature.
Source/More: Industry experts predict that Blockchain will drive a wedge through insurance intermediation | The Fintech Times
