The cryptocurrency revolution is opening up new markets for conventional businesses as well. The insurance industry is one such sector that can capitalize on the increasing demand. Mitsui Sumitomo, the Japanese insurance major has announced its plans to offer a new product exclusively for the cryptocurrency sector.
Cryptocurrency exchange platforms around the world are under constant threat of being hacked. Many exchanges including Japan’s own Mt Gox had been a victim of such cyber threat. Now, with insurance companies opening up to the high-risk industry segment, confidence among investors is bound to grow. According to reports, Mitsui Sumitomo’s insurance product is co-developed with the Japanese Bitcoin exchange — bitFlyer. Both cryptocurrency exchanges and its users are set to benefit from the new product offering.
The total coverage offered by Mitsui Sumitomo ranges from 10 million yen to 1 billion yen. It will factor in damages and losses caused by hacking incidents, unauthorized access, other cyber-attacks, human error and impropriety by employees. The product is available for the domestic Bitcoin market and it will also cover the costs incurred by the insurer while dealing with international lawsuits.
The announcement of a new insurance product by Mitsui Sumitomo comes at a time when the adoption of cryptocurrency and blockchain based systems are at an all-time high in the country. Businesses and individuals are increasingly using custom cryptocurrency solutions to meet their requirements. Apart from Bitcoin, Counterparty is one of the widely-adopted cryptocurrency platforms in Japan at the moment.
The increased confidence among the cryptocurrency community in Japan is expected to increase digital currency related activity in the coming years. The transaction and trading related growth during 2016 and 2017 is expected increase beyond the previously estimated figures by Seed Planning, a market research firm.
As Asian countries of Japan, China, and India continues to adopt cryptocurrency in the rapid pace, due to various economic factors, Bitcoin is expected to display huge growth in the coming years.
Ref: Nikkei | Image: NewsBTC