Insurtech Symposium 2021 in Cologne. Source: Simon Schneider
On Thursday, Cologne was the “place to be” for insurance companies, insurtechs, investors and start-ups from all over the world. 120 hand-picked participants were invited to the exclusive invite-only event Insurtechsymposium 2021 to discuss the future of the insurance industry. For many, it was the first live event since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
And the trip to Cologne was worth it: the agenda was packed with exciting topics relating to insurance. Caribou honey, Co-Founder & Chairman of the world’s largest Insurtech trade fair, ITC (InsureTech Connect) in Las Vegas, traveled from the USA to present the latest Insurtech trends from America at the Insurtech Symposium 2021.
As part of a panel on corporate innovation, the panelists exchanged animated ideas about how innovation gets into insurance and how it doesn’t get stuck at the entrance to insurance. Ulrich Wallin, former CEO of Hannover Re and today Chairman of Hannover Digital Investments, looked into the question of whether insurtechs are friends or enemies of insurance companies.
A total of 18 start-ups from the USA, Germany, UK, Finland, Norway, Switzerland and Austria, among others, had the opportunity to present their business ideas in front of the audience and thus draw attention to themselves. The aim was not only to get the investors present in the room enthusiastic about their idea, but also to talk to insurance companies about a possible cooperation. For this reason, the event also offered enough space for a lot of networking and discussions between the participants.
At the end of the program came the highlight of the day Carsten Maschmeyer on stage in a whimsical fireside chat with Nicole Schepanek looked back on his time in the insurance industry and reported on his current investments in insurtech and fintech. The organizers are already working on the next event, which is planned for mid-2022.
Author: Simon Schneider
–
