Vasily Kudrin, Director of Lybrion and AO HLB Vneshaudit, spoke at Eurasian Actuarial Congress on the prospects for application of blockchain technologies and cryptoindustry tools in insurance and other financial sector organizations. 

Presentation: ENG | RUS

Coherent exposition of the presentation

1. Introduction, the speaker’s background. Vasily Kudrin starts the speech by stating the main topic: the application of crypto assets and integration into Web3 for insurance and financial organizations. He introduces his extensive background, which includes executive leadership in a mining company, insurance sector consulting, and running a digital asset management firm. Mr. Kudrin emphasizes his deep blockchain expertise, gained through years of hands-on experience; he is familiar with major international and Russian blockchains, including regulated Digital Financial Asset (DFA) platforms, and has practical experience in token issuance.

2. Topic relevance for the insurance market. The speaker confirms strong interest in Web3 from insurance company executives who actively seek to understand the practical benefits and integration pathways. This interest is backed by his direct experience working with the industry.

3. Current market context and cyclicality. In the report it’s noted the current bullish trend in the crypto market, specifically Bitcoin’s price surge. The speaker explains this dynamic through classical economic cycles (Kitchin, Juglar, Kuznets), arguing that their predictability allows for reliable forecasting.

4. Technology maturity phase. Referencing the Gartner hype cycle, the speaker indicates that crypto and blockchain technologies are now in a mature adaptation phase, not a frenzy of innovation. This creates an ideal environment for conservative financial firms to implement proven, battle-tested solutions.

5. Favorable window of opportunity. The current period is framed as a unique “window of opportunity” for traditional companies. On one hand, there is time until ~2026 for orderly integration; on the other, inaction risks missing significant competitive advantages and future market share.

6. Key insurtech trends. Vasily Kudrin outlines three key insurtech trends: the arrival of new players disrupting old models; a focus on digitizing the customer experience; and the obsolescence of competencies at traditional insurtech firms, whose resources can be redirected to Web3.

7. Web3 advantages for insurance. Beyond basic corporate blockchain benefits (fraud reduction, transparency), Mr. Kudrin highlights more strategic advantages. These include creating new products, accessing international markets, and accelerating settlements through new payment rails.

8. Common misconception about blockchain. The speaker warns against the common error of viewing blockchain merely as a tool for internal process optimization. This limited perspective, he argues, leads to falling behind global shifts in the financial market.

9. Achievements in crypto insurance: de-fi and hedging. The speaker states that crypto insurance already has a solid history. Having started with market risk hedging in DeFi, it is now a developed ecosystem with exchanges and staking services.

10. Role of oracles and parametric insurance. Then Vasily Kudrin highlights the critical role of blockchain oracles like Chainlink, which connect blockchains to external data. This creates a powerful foundation for parametric insurance, where payouts can be triggered automatically based on verifiable real-world events.

11. Expanding use cases. The application of crypto insurance is expanding beyond pure market risks. Examples given include flight delay insurance and prediction markets (e.g., Polymarket), which demonstrated high accuracy during the US elections.

12. Current state and positioning of the projects. An analysis of rankings (Coingecko) shows that pure-play crypto insurance projects (e.g., Nexus Mutual) are not yet top-ranked. Vasily Kudrin explains this is due to their deliberate distancing from the regulatory definition of “insurance” to avoid scrutiny.

13. Integration challenge with the “real world”. A key complexity is emphasized: insurance often requires interaction with the off-chain world (surveyors, assessors), which is still underdeveloped in decentralized networks that prefer fully on-chain operations.

14. Classification of crypto insurance projects. All projects in this sphere are divided into a number domains of two areas: innovative (DeFi, parametric, and mutual insurance) and conservative (Web2.5, insurer alliances, regulated blockchains, and Blockchain-as-a-Service (BaaS)).

15. Impact of state regulation; regulatory methods. States (polities), through central banks, will seek to maintain control by promoting CBDCs and tokenized cash first. Decentralized insurance falls into a “gray” area and is often outlawed under the blanket term “cryptocurrencies.” Further, Vasily Kudrin warns that restrictive, prohibitive regulation will not eliminate the market but will lead to new decentralized players seizing the initiative. States use tools like regulatory sandboxes, CBDC bridges, and exchange regulations for control.

16. Near-term prospects (InsurWeb). Vasily Kudrin says that the future will see the formation of “insurweb” – decentralized insurance networks. Their development will involve using AI for oracles, zk-SNARKs for data privacy, and active participation in financing international trade.

17. The special role of ReInsurance. Reinsurance companies have a unique opportunity to become the core for building such Web3 networks, uniting insurers, underwriters, and surveyors, which would provide them with global scaling, especially in export credit insurance.

18. Recommendations, conclusion. In the final, Vasily Kudrin offers a concrete action plan: understand the impact on your profession, master basic skills (wallets, exchanges), gain personal hands-on experience, analyze use cases, and only then propose a transformation program for your company.