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Processing Marine Insurance in Real Time

Sector: Tertiary sector · Industry: Shipping and maritime transport · Organisation: Insurwave (EY + Guardtime), A.P. Møller-Maersk, Willis Towers Watson, XL Catlin, MS Amlin · Maturity level: Production

Insurwave (a 2018 joint venture between EY and Guardtime) is the world's first blockchain platform for marine insurance. Built on Microsoft Azure and the Corda blockchain, it connects shipowners, brokers, insurers and reinsurers in a shared digital ledger. In the pilot with Maersk, more than 1,000 container ships were insured and over 500,000 automated ledger transactions processed per year. Real-time vessel data (position, cargo, weather) enables dynamic premium adjustment instead of static annual contracts.

Documentation status

• Project status: Production
• Evidence: Evidence high
• Editorial review: Ufuk Avci, 26 April 2026

Description

Insurwave (a joint venture between EY and Guardtime, since 2018) is the world’s first production blockchain platform for marine insurance. Based on R3 Corda and Microsoft Azure, it connects shipowners (Maersk, 350 container ships), brokers (Willis Towers Watson), insurers (XL Catlin, MS Amlin) and the industry standard ACORD in a shared digital ledger. In its first year, over 1,000 ships were insured and more than 500,000 automated transactions processed. The platform replaces paper-based processes: policies, premiums, claims and payments run automatically via smart contracts. Thanks to real-time ship data — position, cargo, weather conditions, engine parameters — insurers can dynamically assess risks instead of waiting for annual declarations.

Lars Henneberg, Head of Risk and Insurance at Maersk, describes the transformation: Maersk knows in real time the location, cargo and condition of every ship. The question was whether insurance could be based on the actual behaviour of ships rather than paper declarations. Insurwave answers this question with yes. The platform manages up to 27 data points per ship (instead of 7 in the old system), enabling much more precise underwriting decisions. In 2019, Insurwave expanded to China (Zhuhai port). EY and Guardtime plan to extend to cargo insurance, aviation and energy.

Perspectives

B2B — organisations perspective

Luxury brands, jewellers and insurers can blockchain-verify the authenticity, origin and ownership chain of every luxury item via Everledger — fraud protection and premium positioning through verifiable provenance.

B2C — consumers perspective

Buyers of luxury goods receive immutable proof of origin, authenticity and ownership chain of their jewellery, watch or artwork through Everledger-secured digital passports.

Employees perspective

Employees in companies using Everledger receive new digital tools for quality control and customer advice, can provide customers with detailed information about product origin and quickly access verified data in case of complaints or insurance claims. The technology also simplifies internal processes such as inventory management and compliance documentation.

Benefits

General

• The platform reduces counterfeiting and fraud in the luxury goods industry through immutable digital identities for each product.
• Consumers and companies receive full transparency about the origin and supply route of luxury goods.
• The system strengthens trust among all participants in the supply chain and enables new business models in the second-hand market.

B2B — organisations

• Companies can protect their brand reputation and strengthen customer trust through verifiable proof of authenticity.

B2C — consumers

• Customers gain confidence when purchasing expensive luxury goods through certificates of authenticity that can be checked at any time.

Employees

• Employees receive digital tools for better customer advice and can quickly access verified product data in case of problems.

Challenges

General

• Integrating blockchain technology with existing systems and processes in the supply chain requires technical expertise and investments in new infrastructure.
• All participants in the supply chain must be encouraged to join the system to ensure seamless traceability.

B2B — organisations

• Companies need to train their employees in the new technology and may need to adapt existing business processes.

Employees

• Employees must learn new digital skills and become familiar with blockchain-based systems.

Technology foundation

Everledger uses its own private blockchain platform, specially developed for tracking luxury goods and complemented by state-of-the-art technologies such as NFC chips, IoT sensors and artificial intelligence. This combination enables the creation of a digital twin for each luxury item, which immutably stores all relevant information about origin, authenticity and supply route and makes it transparent for all participants in the supply chain.

Implementation examples

Fred Meyer Jewelers RockSolid Collection

Fred Meyer Jewelers wanted to strengthen customers' trust in the authenticity and quality of their diamonds and differentiate themselves from competitors through innovative technology. The company sought a solution to prevent counterfeiting and provide customers with transparent information about their purchases.

Fred Meyer Jewelers uses the Everledger platform for their RockSolid collection in 100 US stores for blockchain-based diamond certification.

The US jewellery retailer Fred Meyer Jewelers has implemented the Everledger platform in 100 of its stores to equip the RockSolid collection with blockchain-based certificates of authenticity. Each diamond receives a digital identity that can be read via NFC technology, providing customers with detailed information about the origin, quality, and supply chain of the stone. This implementation enables the company to differentiate itself from competitors and strengthen customers' trust in the authenticity of their diamonds.

The system solves the problem of lack of transparency when buying diamonds and gives customers the assurance that they are purchasing authentic, high-quality stones. At the same time, it reduces the risk of counterfeiting and strengthens the company's brand reputation.

Tags

Supply chain, Luxury goods, Transparency, Counterfeit protection, Traceability

Sources

1. Blockchain Luxury Goods: Helping to Improve Trust and Sustainability
2. Blockchain Asset Tracking
3. Industry Solutions: Luxury Goods
4. Blockchain Edelsteine
5. Insurance Business: Marine insurance platform launches (Insurwave, Pilotkunde Maersk)
6. SAFETY4SEA: Marine insurance blockchain tech sees another participant (Insurwave Ltd. als Joint Venture)