Creating a unified data platform for reinsurance

“Supercede exists to provide the reinsurance industry with much better digital tools.”

With these words, Ben Rose, co-founder and president of Supercede, confirms he is on a mission to revolutionise the reinsurance industry. 

With an ambitious vision and boundless enthusiasm, he aims to tackle the age-old challenges of data fragmentation and inefficiency that have plagued the sector for far too long.

Discussing the intricacies of getting deals done in reinsurance, Rose explained: “The first three to six months of a deal, outward teams are working hard with their brokers to prepare very data-heavy submission packs.”

These packs aren’t created in a vacuum; they require meticulous work to compile all necessary data, from loss runs to limit profiles. 

Rose emphasised: “It’s a lot of hard work, and it takes people’s time away from other things they could be doing.” 

This daunting task often detracts from what teams should truly focus on: building partnerships and optimising renewal structures, and that’s where Supercede can step in, according to Rose—“to take away all of the data pain”. 

The issue of data fragmentation looms large in the reinsurance landscape. 

“You tend to have one buyer’s version of the truth, possibly two or three brokers, and then all the different reinsurers have their own way of recording what happened in that deal,” Rose stated.

This confusion hampers effective communication and can lead to misalignment among parties.

The solution? Supercede is creating a unified platform that provides a single source of truth, making it easier for all parties involved to track and manage deals.

“Partnership at the moment is frustrated by data quality,” Rose pointed out, adding that reinsurers seemed increasingly irritated with the lack of reliable data, which could lead to uncertainty and inflated pricing. 

“We’re not here to replace things that are already out there.”

The call for better data quality has echoed consistently throughout the Baden-Baden conference, setting the stage for action.

With recent growth, including a successful $15 million series A funding round, Supercede is poised to expand its offerings. 

Rose noted: “We’ve been able to grow our team and expand products that we’re offering.” 

Partnering up 

The focus isn’t just on innovating but also on forming valuable partnerships within the industry. 

“We’re not here to replace things that are already out there,” he emphasised. Instead, they’re integrating with existing systems, ensuring a smoother flow of information without the headache of manual data entry.

Digital transformation in reinsurance has been a hot topic, and Rose has seen it evolve first-hand.

“When we started, the reinsurance industry had been confronted with digitisation and hadn’t quite settled on what its vision was going to be,” Rose observed. 

The initial excitement was met with competing ideas, some more disruptive than helpful. 

Now, however, the industry appears to be moving towards a more pragmatic approach, according to Rose, focusing on the essential need for data quality as a stepping stone to adopting advanced artificial intelligence solutions.

The industry’s evolving attitude toward digital platforms fascinates Rose. He explained: “We’re seeing lots of adoption from cedants, brokers and reinsurers as they realise it makes sense not to do this 1,000 times but to have one good version instead.”

One standout example of Supercede’s impact is its sophisticated artificial intelligence designed to help casualty professionals stack policies correctly.

“We’re committed to being a global player.”

“In the past, this was a messy process,” Rose noted. “We thought it was crazy that brilliant actuaries and brokers were burdened with such manual work. So, we built an algorithm that learns continuously to spot stacking policies, flagging them for user approval.” 

This innovation automates a cumbersome task, allowing skilled professionals to focus on higher-value activities.

Looking ahead, Rose is optimistic about Supercede’s future, especially with a new office in London.

“We’re committed to being a global player because reinsurance is a global market,” he said. 

Rose is eager to forge relationships with cat model providers to handle modelled outputs and compare different structure options. He expressed enthusiasm about integrating with other providers in the space to ease the data entry burden further.

As Supercede continues to refine its tools, the company is steadfast in its mission to create a reinsurance environment where professionals can thrive, free from the shackles of manual data entry.

As the industry grapples with data quality and fragmentation, Supercede sets itself tough standards to fulfil. Rose is adamant that with the right tools and partnerships, the reinsurance industry could be transformed into “a much easier industry to work in”.

Ben Rose is the co-founder and president of Supercede. He can be contacted at: ben@supercede.com 

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