Innovate Together Talk: Sompo Hong Kong | 齊來創新深度談:日本財產保險香港

MIDAS is a collaborative effort between the Hong Kong Federation of Insurers (HKFI) and CryptoBLK that harnesses Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) or blockchain to ensure the authentication of motor insurance documents and fight against fraudulent cases. In 2020, MIDAS won the Gold Award from Hong Kong ICT Award; and in 2019, it was awarded the Innovation of the Year from Asia Insurance Review in Singapore.

CryptoBLK is thrilled to launch the “Innovate Together” Talk, where we will have an in-depth conversation with industry leaders, who will update us on the challenges and opportunities the industry is facing, and how MIDAS can bring “trust” to the whole industry through the blockchain, and hence solving the industry pain points.

We are honored to have Mr. S.K., Director and Chief Executive Officer of Sompo Insurance Company (Hong Kong), as our guest in the “Innovate Together” Talk. He will share his views on the digital transformation in Hong Kong’s insurance and the application of blockchain technology,  as well as the value and benefits of MIDAS to law enforcement and public interests.

 

Q: How do you think about the digital transformation in Hong Kong’s insurance industry

S.K.: Actually, many insurance companies (both life and non-life) were already pursuing a digital transformation roadmap few years ago. However, the pandemic crisis has further accelerated the trend toward automation and digitalization. It is expected that more companies are going to leverage technology to reduce costs, improve data analysis, streamline claims and underwriting procedures, bolster customer service and drive efficiency. Also, remote technologies help companies moving toward virtual operations in the “new normal”.

 

Q: HKFI is making effort on digitizing the industry, such as investing blockchain technology to develop industry-wide platform MIDAS. What is your view on it?

S.K.: MIDAS is the first industry-wide platform using blockchain technology to address the perennial problem of fake cover note / policy document. It is a successful public-private partnership initiative which is fully supported by the Insurance Authority, insurance companies, intermediaries and car owners. We are looking forward to having more industry-wide platform initiating / leading by HKFI to support the industry’s digital transformation.

 

Q: Innovation for wellbeing is Sompo’s brand slogan. Since when does Sompo start the digital transformation journey?

S.K.: Sompo Hong Kong has started the digital transformation journey since 2016 ranging from front-end transformations such as products and customer experiences to back-end transformation such as cloud and IT infrastructure. For example, we have improved our customer experience to take advantage of digital technologies and include features such as e-Claims or online sales. We have built a strong IT infrastructure in order to provide a central digital nervous system for our company.

 

Q: Sompo is the first few insurance companies adopting MIDAS. When considering implementing a new system, such as MIDAS, into your existing system, how do you evaluate the value of a new system? Does MIDAS bring the value that you are looking for?

S.K.: As businesses get more complex, manual processes and systems become increasingly error-prone and risky. Bringing the new system into the company can help automate, streamline, and refine the operating process, as a result of releasing our staff to do meaningful, high-value work. MIDAS platform can create competitive advantages for our company. QR codes generated by the MIDAS platform provide easy access for car owners and the Transport Department to authenticate insurance documents instantly.

 

Q: Do you think the integration of MIDAS to your system will benefit to your customer? What does your customer say about your new system after using MIDAS?

S.K.: Sure. Using MIDAS can help us to authenticate motor insurance cover notes/policies by generating specific QR codes. The portal can display the latest status of the cover note/policy and the coverage period corresponding to the QR code. By using the service, car owners can use the QR code to have their insurance cover notes and policies authenticated at the Transport Department’s offices.

 

Q: Any challenges in the API process?

S.K.: Our team has faced challenges when testing API implementations. API testing is part of the integrations testing process and concerns the communication between our core system and MIDAS. Our team put more efforts on validating parameters and system integration by making sure all parameter data uses the correct string or numerical data type as well as API performance.

Mr. S.K. Li

Director and Chief Executive Officer

Sompo Insurance Company (Hong Kong) Limited

Mr. S.K. Li is the Director and Chief Executive Officer of Sompo Insurance Company (HK) Ltd. – a member of SOMPO Holdings, one of the largest globally competitive insurance groups listed in Tokyo Stock Exchange of Japan.

He has 30 years of experience in insurance industry in PRC and Hong Kong. He is elected as the General Insurance Councillor and ExCom Member of Insurance Fraud Prevention Claims Database of Hong Kong Federation of Insurers.

MIDAS 是香港保險業聯會聯合 CryptoBLK 開發的 DLT / 區塊鏈汽車保單認證系統,旨在解決汽車保險欺詐行為,並實現行業數字化。MIDAS 在2020 年榮獲由政府資訊科技總監辦公室發起的「香港資訊及通訊科技奬」的金獎殊榮; 在 2019 年獲《亞洲保險評論雜誌》選為「年度創意大獎」得主。

在 CrypoBLK 新一期的「齊來創新 Innovate Together」系列專題中,我們希望透過與行業領袖的對話,讓大家更加了解車保行業的現況、挑戰和機遇,以及 MIDAS 如何透過區塊鏈技術為整個行業帶來「信任」,解決行業痛點。

我們很榮幸能邀請到日本財產保險(香港)有限公司董事兼行政總裁李相健先生作為今期的嘉賓,他會分享香港保險業的數碼轉型情況、區塊鏈技術在保險的應用,以及 MIDAS 對整個業界和大眾的價值。

 

問﹕你對於香港保險行業數碼化轉型有什麼看法?

 

S.K.:實際上不少的保險公司(人壽保險公司和非人壽保險公司)在幾年前已經在推行數碼化轉型,而新冠肺炎的出現無疑進一步加速了自動化和數碼化的趨勢。未來不難預計將有更多的公司會利用科技來降低成本,改善數據分析,簡化索賠和承保程序,增強客戶服務並提高效率。此外,遙距技術還可以幫助公司在“新常態”中向虛擬營運方向過渡。

 

問﹕香港保險業聯會現正致力於數碼化行業,如投資區塊鏈技術來開發全行業的平台,MIDAS 你對此有何看法?

 

S.K.:MIDAS 是第一個利用區塊鏈技術解決長期性偽造臨時保單/保單條款文件的問題的行業級平台。這是一項成功獲得保險業監管局、保險公司、中介機構和車主全力支持的公私合營計劃。我們期待保聯發起或領導更多的創新舉措以支持行業的數碼化轉型。

 

問:創新是日本財產保險的品牌口號,而日本財產保險自什麼時候開始數碼化轉型之旅?

S.K.:日本財產保險(香港)公司自 2016 年以來已開啟了數碼化轉型之旅,包括從產品和客戶體驗等前端轉型,到雲端和IT基礎架構等後端轉型。例如,我們利用數碼技術提供電子索賠及在線銷售等功能改善了客戶體驗。我們建立了強大的IT基礎架構,以便為公司提供中央數字系統。

 

問:日本財產保險(香港)公司是最先採用 MIDAS 的保險公司。在考慮將 MIDAS 這類新系統整合到現有系統中時,您是如何評估其價值?而 MIDAS 是否可以滿足您的需求

S.K.:手動流程和系統會隨著越來越複雜的業務變得更容易出錯和需承擔更高的風險。而將新系統引入公司可以幫助自動化、簡化和完善操作流程,使我們的員工去做有意義、高價值的工作。而 MIDAS 平台可以為我們公司創造競爭優勢。由 MIDAS 平台產成的 QR code 為車主和運輸署提供了更便捷的讀取方式,可立即對保單進行身份驗證。

 

問:你認為將 MIDAS 集成有到系統中將利於客戶嗎?使用 MIDAS 之後,客戶對新系統有什麼評價?

S.K.:對的。MIDAS 可以產成特定的 QR code 來幫助我們驗證汽車的臨時保單/保單。該平台能顯示臨時保單/保單的最新狀態以及與 QR code 對應的有效期。透過該服務,車主可以利用 QR code 在運輸署對保單進行身份驗證。

 

問:API 流程中有遇到任何挑戰嗎?

S.K.:我們的團隊在測試實施 API 時遇過不少挑戰。而 API 測試是集成測試過程的一部分,當中涉及我們核心系統與 MIDAS 之間的傳遞。為確保所有參數數據使用正確的字符或數字以及 API 性能,我們的團隊在驗證參數和系統集成方面投入相對較多精力。

李相健先生

董事兼行政總裁

日本財產保險(香港)有限公司

李相健先生是日本財產保險(香港)有限公司董事兼行政總裁。日本財產保險(香港)有限公司是 SOMPO Holdings 的集團成員之一。SOMPO Holdings 於日本東京交易所上市,是全球最具競爭力的保險集團之一。

李先生投身中國及香港保險業超過卅戴,現被委選為香港保險業聯會一般保險總會委員及預防保險詐騙偵測系統執行委員會會員。

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