Insurance companies are very much aware of the FinTech revolution: 74% of respondents see FinTech innovations as a challenge for their industry. There is a good reason to believe that insurance is indeed heading down the path of disruptive innovation, whether it is the effect of an external factor, such as the rise of the sharing economy, or the ability to improve operations using artificial intelligence.
However, despite these emerging trends, a disconnect exists between the amount of disruption perceived and insurers’ willingness to invest to defend against and/or take advantage of the innovation: 43% of the industry players claim they have FinTech at the heart of their corporate strategies, but only 28% explore partnerships with FinTech companies and even less than 14% actively participate in ventures and/or incubator programs.
Incumbent insurers who are currently focused on catching up with their competitors around customer centricity and other current trends are missing the opportunity to become proactive. They need to create a clear and consistent message that will demonstrate their willingness to play in the new InsurTech space and act accordingly – only such an approach will position incumbents to be frontrunners in the new insurance era.