While most people know BitFury as a company involved in mining Bitcoin, it is also an active investor in blockchain technology. The company recently made a key investment in REGA, a firm specializing in insurance products on the blockchain. It’s a rather surprising turn of events, even though BitFury sees merit in the “crowdsurance” business model.
Bringing Insurance Products to the Blockchain
It is always interesting to see how different projects apply blockchain technology. While the potential of this technology has yet to be fully unlocked, there are quite a few use cases worth exploring. In the case of REGA, the company focuses on a concept known as “crowdsurance”. More specifically, they are bringing insurance products to the blockchain.
Doing so requires a lot of investment, and it seems Bitfury Group has taken somewhat of an interest in what this project has to offer. REGA will also sign an agreement with Bitfury to use the latter’s Exonum protocol to build a decentralized scoring solution. With the new solution, banks and insurance companies will become service providers for this new insurance platform.
The concept of crowdsurance is rather unheard of in the world of insurance products. Rather than take a more traditional approach, REGA wants people to “unite in communities” to provide a guarantee of compensation for unexpected loss. It’s a very noble approach, although its practical implications may leave something to be desired. There’s nothing wrong with using the “smarts” of the crowd in general, but providing insurance with this model is a different matter altogether.
That is where blockchain technology comes into the picture. With the blockchain, REGA can provide transparent qualities to revamp traditional insurance mechanisms. This makes Bitfury’s investment all the more important, as the company is showing an appetite for developing blockchain-oriented solutions and tools. One of its most recent products came in the form of a new blockchain analysis tool, which will certainly attract a lot of attention moving forward.
It seems REGA is focusing on quite a few markets for its crowdsurance projects. Right now, its three solutions center around pet owners, travel luggage, and athlete protection. There are quite a few opportunities in the insurance sector, and it will be interesting to see what the company has in store next. Since there are no traditional insurers to speak of, and no intermediaries or brokers, the company is heading down a rather interesting path.
All of the company’s products are backed by smart contracts, and processes are controlled and managed by in-house developed algorithms. REGA will also provide a solution to cover risks for its own and third-party products, which is something worth keeping an eye on as well. When Bitfury Group takes an interest – and a financial stake – in any company, one can rest assured that company will see some form or another of success sooner or later.
