Barbican Insurance Group, the London-based specialty re/insurance player, is to research and explore trends that will influence and drive the future of the London insurance and reinsurance market.
Barbican and Gracechurch Consulting conducted a survey on the future of the London Market focused on innovation and modernisation.
The findings show that 76% of those responding said that market-changing disruption in the London Market was either ‘very likely’ or ‘inevitable’ over the coming decade. 60% said that the market is likely to be either ‘greatly’ or ‘very’ disrupted by external companies such as Amazon, Google and Tesla over the same ten-year period.
The survey also found that key to the future of London market players is operational efficiency, considered the most likely area to benefit from innovation (65%), followed by risk selection and modelling, and customer experience.
In terms of what innovation is considered most exciting currently, machine learning topped the list with 46%, with blockchain securing 39% and predictive modelling 25%.
61% of respondents said that organisational culture is the most likely stumbling block; while a lack of collaboration, and regulation and compliance came second and third. Cost was only highlighted as a hindering factor by 30% of respondents.
Austyn Tusler, head of group strategy, Barbican, commented on the survey results, “It is clear from these findings that the London Market is set to undergo a period of unparalleled change over the next decade. Since our launch in 2007, Barbican has witnessed and been part of substantial market evolution, but the next decade will undoubtedly ramp up the speed of change significantly.”
Barbican has set up a new partnership with Imperial College London to help it explore the future of the London re/insurance market, in a collaboration involving a year-long programme researching the multiple drivers that could shape the future of insurance and reinsurance in London.
Working closely with the Imperial Business Partners (IBP) team, the project will analyse some of the most significant disruptors for the insurance sector, including; the impact of technologies such as machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI), digital trading platforms, market disruption by external players. The work will also examine some of the factors that could limit market modernisation.
Tusler continued, “We are excited to be working with IBP as we undertake this research into the drivers for change in the London Market and how these will shape our industry. This partnership will enable us to capitalise on the huge amount of information and depth of expertise that Imperial College offers.”
Julia Zanghieri, Programme Manager, IBP, added, “Imperial is delighted to be partnering with Barbican to explore what is a critical subject for the London insurance sector as it seeks to evolve and adapt to a rapidly developing market environment. Through working closely with Imperial’s multi-disciplinary experts, taking advantage of the wealth of research we have compiled, and accessing the full breadth of our network, we will fully support Barbican’s efforts to generate greater insight into how this evolution will occur over the next ten years, and to share these findings with the wider market.”
