RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Brazilian open insurance model, created with regulations and incorporated into open banking, is the first in the world, said EY’s partner for digital transformation and innovation in financial services Chen Wei Chi, during the National Confederation of Insurers conference (Conseguro).
“Open insurance is born with rules debated by stakeholders and implemented by the regulator [Superintendence of Private Insurance, SUSEP] and within the broader concept of open finance,” the expert said.
According to Chi, although the schedule foresees the implementation of the insurance market data and operations sharing environment until next year, “we will realize the great innovations within 2 or 3 years, after the system is implemented.”
The consultant says that a “new world will only emerge after the open finance infrastructure is in place.”
The founder and chairman of the board of 88i Seguradora Digital Rodrigo Ventura believes that one of the main discussions of open insurance is the role of the intermediary in the new market structure. “The broker will not disappear, because the relationship of trust does not end, but there will be changes, and this professional will have a more consultative role.”
One of the new features in the rules placed on public hearing by SUSEP is the creation of the Insurance Services Initiation Company (SISS). This may be a fintech, insurtech or even a retailer, which “resembles the role of payment initiators in open banking,” according to SUSEP’s open insurance project coordinator Thiago Barata.
The regulator’s representative said the draft presented for public consultation introduces financial, governance, data secrecy, and conduct practice requirements for SISSs. “We placed these companies subject to penalties, such as de-accreditation.”
The creation of the SISS does not compete with the role of insurance brokers, Barata says. “On the brokers’ issue, I am sure that these professionals will remain strong and active in the sector. One of the concerns in the public consultation was to include the broker when we talk about sharing public and open data, because the draft provides that insurers must have a list of intermediaries who work with the company, and customers can access these data.”