The Transformative Power of Blockchain in Risktech: The Hype is Real

John is co-founder of TrustLayer.io, which provides artificial intelligence and automation tools to streamline insurance processes. TrustLayer's SaaS modules help companies automatically verify insurance coverage and extract information from vendor contracts and insurance policies. John previously founded Hawthorne Capital and was based in Dubai, where he helped U.S. companies expand to emerging markets. He is a member of Sandhill Angels and an active angel investor, focusing on companies that leverage distributed ledger technologies and AI to solve big problems. John received his B.A. magna cum laude from Georgetown University, and his J.D. with Honors from University of Wisconsin and studied at the University of Beijing.

Ronnie Kher leads Sales & Business Development efforts for the Insurance vertical at R3. He joined R3 after 12+ years of Business Transformation experience in P&C Insurance to be at the forefront of the Insurtech revolution.

Christopher has 25+ years’ experience in the financial services industry with varied projects and management roles including organizational transformation, process improvement, roadmap development, PMO and all facets of technology. Experience includes projects related to process re-engineering, data analytics, system integration and relationship management. Extensive experience in the Life and Annuity space, with strong industrywide relationships and operational expertise.

Christopher is currently President of The Institutes RiskBlockTM Alliance. The Institutes RiskBlock Alliance is an unprecedented, industry-led consortium collaborating to unlock the potential of blockchain across the insurance industry. RiskBlock will accelerate time to market and adoption through real-world applications and impactful blockchain use cases.

Previously, Christopher was a Specialist Leader in Deloitte Consulting Insurance Practices specializing in Strategy and Operations.

Previous to Deloitte, Christopher was the SVP of Operations & Technology for the Insured Retirement Institute, where he brought together operations, technology and compliance executives across the largest insurance and brokerage companies in the nation into one strategic voice to drive the annuities industry forward. He was also responsible for the management and expansion of the industry standard Straight Through Processing business processing models.

Christopher also served as the Chief Operating Officer & VP of Annuities Product Management at Aplifi, the industry provider of the second largest annuities transaction order entry platforms. During his tenure he completed a turn-around of the annuities processing software firm from zero customers in production to 40 during, with a more than doubling of the company’s valuation.

Lastly, Christopher served as a SVP & Chief Information Officer in Pacific Life’s Broker/Dealer unit. This unit consisted six securities firms with more than 3,000 branch offices. Christopher was brought in to standardize the technology across all companies, while running the day-to-day technology. Systems implemented tripled securities trading volume while providing 75% improved regulatory compliance with bullet proof disaster preparedness.

Fresh out of college, Courtney Osborne began her career in the insurance industry. First, she worked for Boston-based broker William Gallagher Associates Insurance Brokers, then moved to Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. as part of its real estate group.