This week we bring you a very special episode, straight from the heart of London’s insurance industry. Our guest has provided leadership, inspiration, innovation and the embracing of all communities irrespective of gender, race or religious affiliation. We are proud to have with us Inga Beale, CEO of Lloyd’s of London. We will be discussing blockchain and the future of Lloyd’s. As Insureblocks is based on community, Inga will also be answering the questions you submitted over the past weeks.

 

Blockchain in two minutes

A blockchain is a shared, immutable record of transactions. Blockchain’s traceability and cryptographic verification make it an exciting prospect for the insurance industry.

Transactions can become particularly complex and involve numerous parties. A claim, for example, usually involves the claimant, the policyholder and the customer. However, it can also involve a third-party loss adjuster, a lawyer, an underwriter, a company claims adjuster, brokers and so on. The beauty of blockchain is that it creates a single, shared, transparent record that every party in the transaction can rely on.

 

Lloyd’s of London

Lloyd’s is an insurance market comprised of over 80 insurance syndicates. Lloyd’s is unique as these syndicates are competitors but also collaborate in sharing the bigger risks. In its 330 year history Lloyd’s has always been there to ensure risk never came in the way of human ingenuity and support human progress through the good and the bad, whether that was launching a satellite into space or the Titanic’s fateful voyage.

Lloyd’s in the changing landscape

The insurance industry has found itself at a point of unprecedented change. On the technology front blockchain, IoT, AI and robotics are ready to drastically update the industry. Incumbents also face a huge number of new entrants including insuretechs and their innovative, customer-centric propositions, Amazon and possibly even Chinese firms like Zhong An and Ping An. As Inga mentioned at the Dubai World Insurance Congress, the insurance sector risks “sleepwalking” in this new world if it remains complacent.

Inga has therefore taken active steps to ensure Lloyd’s remains a leader through this changing environment. While Lloyd’s has been known to be very traditional in some ways, such as being very paper-based, Inga informs us Lloyd’s has turned a corner and is on its way to being a leader in the new world. Unlike startups, whether insuretechs or fintechs, which usually focus on a single solution, Lloyd’s is focusing on the whole industry. It is working together with new entrants to make sure it is getting the best of these new ideas and piece them together to complete the bigger picture.

 

Driving change within Lloyd’s

Inga Beale and Shirine Khoury-Haq, Lloyd’s COO, have shown a keen interest in blockchain since 2015. This resulted to the London Market Target Operating Model (TOM) initiative launching in 2016, which now runs a major consultation to see how blockchain can improve the industry. Here is a copy of their whitepaper.

However, bringing change in an organisation as large and unique as Lloyd’s can be challenging.