Allianz Unveils Blockchain Prototype for Self-Insurance Products

Global insurer Allianz has unveiled a new blockchain prototype focused on “captive” insurance policies.

The prototype, the firm announced today, is aimed at providing a more streamlined approach for captive or self-insurance policies. With this type of product, a company will essentially insure themselves and their subsidiaries versus a more traditional policy purchase. Per Allianz, the complexities involved in this process – which can cover multiple jurisdictions – make the strong case for a more distributed solution.

According to Allianz, Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions handled the payment process involved with the insurance. The prototype utilized the Hyperledger Fabric 1.0 software, which was published by the Linux Foundation-backed consortium of enterprises in July.

Hartmut Mai, a board member for AGCS, said in a statement:

“We are currently seeing many blockchain applications in the financial services industry and we are eager to explore the potential of this exciting technology in the corporate insurance segment.”

The prototype’s unveiling is the latest indication that Allianz sees a potentially positive role for the tech within its services.

Allianz has been testing blockchain use cases as early as 2015, when it revealed that it had brought in a blockchain startup within one of its accelerator programs. Since then, the insurance giant has experimented with applications in areas such as catastrophe bond trading.

A video of Allianz’ prototype can be found below:

Allianz building image via Shutterstock