Vivek Zakarde spearheaded blockchain deployment in Reliance General Insurance’s claims management process – to automate handling as well as to tackle fraud. A transaction can only be approved by consensus, and once approved, transaction records cannot be altered. Validation is one of blockchain’s strongest suits, and therefore a perfect solution in the insurance space. Blockchain also gives Reliance General Insurance a highly reliable historical record of claims details, which can be used to identify patterns of fraud. In terms of automating claims handling, RGI makes use of smart contracts – agreements between two parties registered on the distributed ledger. In the same way that the ledger can be used to authorize and trigger payments, smart contracts use the technology to trigger agreed actions when certain conditions are met. The insurance major saved INR 50 crore in the first year of implementation. Greater efficiency in settlement processes throughout claims management with a significant reduction in costs and time. Reliance GI’s ‘claim settlement using blockchain’ deployment is the first in the insurance industry. The claims settlement process was ridden with loop holes that can be used for fraudulent claims. Additionally, the process consumed a lot of manpower and time. The blockchain implementation now gives the company a highly reliable historical record of claims details, which can be used to identify patterns of fraud. Additionally, the deployment also helped Reliance GI win the trust of its customers.