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European insurance giants are far ahead of their US counterparts in talking about blockchain technology, according to new research.
S & P Global, a data provider, sought transcripts of large insurers earnings requests with analysts for discussions on blockchain technology, and found 33 in the last two years. Of these, 15 were in Europe, with nine each in North America and Asia.
The research sheds light on the different attitudes of financial giants to the technology at the forefront of the distributed ledger, which is the basis of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin.
banks and other traditional financial institutions have been slow to jump into volatile markets for trading cryptographic assets, many have begun to explore the potential of blockchain to build more efficient and secure administration and administration systems.
In his research, S & P found that booster blockchains should "look outside the United States" for insurers interested in technology, according to Thomas Mason, author of the latest report. Mason has identified several efforts by European insurers.
Axa has a flight insurance project, called Fizzy, which uses "smart insurance" contacts written on the master blockchain that underlies Etherium's cryptocurrency.
The German insurance giant Allianz is working on using blockchain in swap agreements in catastrophe insurance and captive insurance programs. Prudential, the UK-based insurer based in Asia, has a digital commerce platform in Singapore called Fasttrack Trade that uses blockchain.
Europe is also home to B3i, an initiative founded by 15 major insurers that is working on blockchain reassurance of real estate catastrophes.
But while European insurers have paved the way, Chinese insurance giant Ping An is the individual venture that has most frequently talked about technology with analysts: over four separate calls since 2016.
Mason wrote : "Ping An considers blockchain one of its five core technologies, as mentioned by executives during an investor day in November 2017 … one of its main initiatives was the creation of a blockchain-as-a-service platform, which provides services to small and medium-sized businesses that want to access the latest technologies. "
Mason drew comparisons between the Chinese insurance giant and the New York exchange broker Nasdaq, who" discusses blockchain frequently during conference calls and, similarly , has turned technology into one of its main product offerings ".
In contrast, US insurers appear to adopt a "watch-and-see" strategy on distributed ledger technology, S & P said. Mason said that if the initiatives in Europe and Asia prove successful, the United States will probably follow the example and "dive deeper into the block waters".
To complete his earnings research, S & P also said he would contact 20 of the largest insurance groups in the United States directly, but only got "a few answers". In general, Mason observed, "information remained elusive".
In June, the Boston Consultancy Group attempted to spur the entire insurance industry into action when it reported that P & C insurers worldwide could "generate over $ 200 billion more in technical terms ". margin from the current gross written prizes "adopting technology.
To contact the author of this story with feedback or news, send an email to Emily Horton
