EY, Maersk, Microsoft to build insurance platform using blockchain

According to Reuters, the project will be the first real-world use of the nascent technology in the shipping industry. EY and Guardtime announced that the platform had already been built and would be deployed in January 2018. The platform is built on Microsoft’s Azure cloud-based technology.

The blockchain is considered to be essential for this platform to function, as it can guarantee that all parties - from shipping companies to brokers, insurers and other suppliers - had access to the same database, which could be integrated into insurance contracts.

Starting with 2018, A.P. Moller-Maersk, which was part of a 20-week trial of the new platform, would start using it for some areas of its business, along with insurers MS Amlin and XL Catlin. International insurance industry standards body ACORD and advisory company Willis Towers Watson also collaborated on building the platform.