Page 53 - MC14326 all pages
P. 53
Nevellan Moodley The South African Insurance Industry Survey 2016 | 49
Senior Manager, The impact of blockchain on the
Technology Regulatory
Tel: +27 82 717 0286 insurance industry
Email: nevellan.moodley@kpmg.co.za
The concept of “disruption” is a topical theme witnessed throughout the market. Uber has
been dubbed a typical disrupter, completely disrupting the taxi industry across the globe,
offering a cheaper and more effective service underpinned by great customer experience,
all while employing no drivers and owning no vehicles.
Bitcoin is one of the world’s first crypto –– It is public, meaning it is not owned by The World Economic Forum (WEF)
currencies. Defined by the Oxford a single person or company has reported the following interesting
dictionary as “a digital currency in perspectives on blockchain:
which encryption techniques are used –– It is decentralised, which means it
to regulate the generation of units of is not stored in a central location but –– The technology is one of the six mega
currency and verify the transfer of funds, across several computers around the trends expected to change the world
operating independently of a central world
bank," Bitcoin allows transactions to –– It currently accounts for 0.025 percent
occur independently of any banking –– Its synchronicity means every of global GDP (USD 80 trillion) and
institution, making it disruptive in its decentralised copy of the database is is expected to grow to 10 percent of
own right. However, the key technology always the same GDP by 2025 (at least USD 8 trillion)
which allows crypto currency to exist
is called “blockchain”. Email was the –– It is secured through cryptography Blockchain is a perfect example of
application that ran on the internet, encryption “business unusual”, with this technology
similarly bitcoin is the application that posed to have a major impact across all
runs on blockchain. I believe that bitcoin This could be visualised as an excel sectors. The insurance sector could be
will be remembered as the innovation spreadsheet that belongs to no single disrupted significantly in the near future
that brought blockchain technology into person but everyone in a specific and this represents an exciting change
our day-to-day. community is in possession of a live in the industry with insurance potentially
copy at any given point in time. The becoming cheaper, more inclusive
A blockchain is a database with the spreadsheet is completely encrypted so and more personalised. Within the
following characteristics: while you may be able to see what is on insurance industry, the application of this
the spreadsheet, it resembles a series of technology has been referred to as peer-
symbols which require decoding. to-peer insurance and/or decentralised
