Simplifying and Accelerating Data Pipelines in Digital Finance and Insurance Applications
Authors: Dr. Elham Nobari
Coordinator: -
Daily activities in insurance and financial companies are traditionally carried out through complex processes such as risk calculation, debt, or credit assessment. Since these companies are predominantly data-driven and have relationships with customers offline and across all channels, the volume of data has grown significantly, and data analysis takes more time than what is permissible for a legitimate business. Generally, many organizations have various data resources, usually performing different operations with different natures to store their data, including both SQL and NoSQL databases. Such databases typically only retain recent data, for example, data from the past 12 months. On the other hand, these companies utilize more analytical databases, such as data warehouses, for tasks like analysis, reporting, and machine learning. Sometimes, they also use stream data technologies to process and continuously query streaming data. These analytical databases are designed to store a large volume of historical data, usually older than 12 months. Data pipelines combine current and past data, enriching and transforming the data simultaneously. LeanXcale is an SQL database that seamlessly integrates with all applications developed using relational databases, simplifying data usage. LeanXcale has unique features that optimize and accelerate data pipelines.
Keywords: digital finance, SQL database, LeanXcale, NoSQL database, risk calculation.
Study and Review Experiences about Cyber Risks and Cyber Insurance in Other Countries
Authors: Dr. Somaeh Mireh, Mohammad Dibaei, Dr. Ruhallah Abujafari, Dr. Yaghub Mahmudian
Coordinator: Dr. Asma Hamzeh
Exploitation of digital technology is known as a pervasive phase all over the world that has faced various businesses with various challenges and fundamental opportunities. In this regard, information systems as a set of components for collecting, storing and processing data and providing information, knowledge and digital products have gained special importance. In order to reduce damages caused by cyber risks, insurance companies have provided a service called cyber insurance that protects organizations and businesses against damages caused by crimes such as information theft, ransomware, hacking, etc. This research project is the preliminary phase of a research program to propose a native cyber insurance product according to the requirements of the country, and its purpose is to provide an official definition for cyber risk, statistics of types of risks and their insurability, types of cyber insurance policies and the risks covered by them. This research is based on the experiences of the leading countries in this field and it uses the method of library study and document review.
Keywords: cyber risk, cyber insurance, ransomware, information theft.
Formulating Reporting and Disclosure of Information Requirements for Iran Insurance Industry Underscoring Bylaw 88
Authors: Dr. Mona Parsaee
Coordinator: Dr. Leili Niakan, Dr. Parastoo Mostafaee, and Tooba Haghighat
Abstract
The purpose of drafting regulations and disclosure requirements, both for supervisory authorities and the public, is to reduce information asymmetry, enhance transparency, and improve comparability to boost market efficiency and regulation. The insurance regulatory body in each country enacts laws and regulations regarding information disclosure to protect the rights of stakeholders. Given the necessity of determining the level of reporting and disclosure regulations for insurance companies, the present study aims to develop reporting and disclosure components in Iran. This research is an applied study, where in the first stage, the challenges of Bylaw No. 88, ratified by the High Council of Insurance, titled “Reporting and Disclosure of Information by Insurance Institutions” are identified through interviews and content analysis. Then, by reviewing reporting and disclosure regulations in Iran's insurance industry, international regulatory frameworks, the European Union, and selected countries, reporting and disclosure components are identified and extracted through document analysis and content analysis. Finally, by leveraging the opinions of subject matter experts, the proposed components for reporting and disclosure are identified through a questionnaire using the fuzzy Delphi method and reaching a consensus. Practical suggestions are also provided for revising Bylaw No. 88. The results of this study offer a description of the current state of reporting and disclosure regulations in the Iranian and global insurance industries and provide guidance for developing an optimal reporting and disclosure model tailored to the local level in Iran's insurance sector.
Keywords: reporting, information disclosure, information asymmetry, insurance industry, Fuzzy Delphi
Study of Rating Systems and Risk Management of Group Health Insurances
Authors: Dr. Mitra Ghanbarzadeh
Coordinator: Mahya Abbasi, Dr. Asma Hamzeh and Dr. Nasrin Hozzar Moghadam
Abstract
Applying supervision in the insurance market includes many areas, and therefore, the methods of intervention and applying supervision in the insurance market have been one of controversial topics among experts. This issue becomes more important in group supplementary health insurance that has a high loss ratio in the insurance industry. Although the Supreme Council of Insurance, in Clause F of Article 10 of Regulation No. 94 of the Supreme Council of Insurance, the special criteria for determining rates of group health insurance has been determined, according to Article 2 of this regulation, insurance companies are required to comply with the technical standards for determining the insurance rate under Article 1, the insurance rate, the tariff table, the amount and cases of discounts and/or additions. The rates of various insurance fields and any changes in them shall be determined by a committee consisting of the internal actuary, the technical officer of the relevant field and the technical deputy, and after the approval of the CEO (or his deputy), shall be approved by the board of directors, and at the same time as it is communicated, a copy along with the explanatory report of the calculation basics shall be issued to Central Insurance of Iran. Therefore, Central Insurance of I. R. Iran as the supervisory body of the insurance industry, it has not interfered in determining the rates and only a copy of the basis of calculation of the rates is sent to it. In this regard, the current research project aims to investigate the interference/non-interference of the supervisory body in determining the group health insurance premium rate, the specific criteria for determining the group health insurance premium rate, and how to manage the risk of this pricing and supervision of the supervisory body in terms of these parameters. Examine the selected countries (India, United States, Switzerland, Türkiye, Australia) and then, based on the results, provide suggestions for amending the 94th regulation of the Supreme Insurance Council in the group health insurance sector.
Keywords: Group Health Insurance, loss ratio, actuary, regulatory body
Formulating the Risk Indices for Marine Insurance Risk Profiles along with Their Actuarial Examination
Authors: Dr. Mohsen Gharakhani
Coordinator: Feriyal Farakesh
Abstract
The maritime industry, as a cornerstone of global trade, faces numerous risks and challenges that impact the safety, efficiency, and sustainability of operations. This study aims to present an integrated and dynamic model for managing maritime risks. Initially, factors influencing ship risks, marine cargo risks, and maritime energy risks were identified through a comprehensive literature review. Subsequently, these factors were ranked and weighted using multi-criteria decision-making methods such as DEMATEL and Analytic Network Process (ANP). The results indicated that human factors hold the highest weight in ship risks; risks related to the transport vessel are most significant in marine cargo risks; and maintenance and repairs are of utmost importance in maritime energy risks. To better understand the interactions between these risks, dynamic system modeling was conducted, incorporating causal loop and flow diagrams. Four exogenous variables—ship age, weather conditions, crew skills, and product type and packaging—were included in the model. Sensitivity analysis revealed that increases in ship age and crew skills have significant short-term effects on risks. Additionally, route planning can mitigate the adverse effects of unfavorable weather conditions, and appropriate product packaging can reduce cargo risks. The proposed model provides a powerful tool for managing maritime risks, enabling decision-makers to develop effective strategies for risk reduction and resource optimization. Implementing this model can lead to enhanced safety, improved operational efficiency, and increased sustainability and competitiveness in the maritime industry. For future research, it is recommended to extend the model to include environmental and economic risks and to utilize real data to enhance the model's accuracy.
Keywords: marine insurance, DEMATEL, actuary, Analytic Network Process
Examination of the Life Reinsurance Coverage and Proposing Appropriate Operational Model Based on the Structure of Iran Insurance Industry
Authors: Dr. Fatemeh Atatalab
Coordinator: Dr. Mahboubeh Alaee and Dr. Mohsen Gharakhani
Abstract
Reinsurance is one of the main risk management tools available to insurance companies, which protects these companies against adverse fluctuations and natural events. Reinsurance contract is important for both parties (insurer and reinsurer) and should be designed carefully. The main purpose of reinsurance is to help insurance companies in transferring risk. In life insurance, due to its long-term nature, the life insurer, through appropriate issuance, premium assumptions and loss management, expects to profit from the mortality experience of a portfolio, but often the actual severity of mortality fluctuations results in some years do harm. Therefore, the insurer tries to protect itself against these fluctuations by transferring part of the risk to the reinsurers. The purpose of this research is to diagnose the Iranian life insurance market and to identify its strengths and weaknesses. Also, in this research, the factors affecting the lack of feeling the need to buy life insurance coverage by insurance companies in Iran were identified and prioritized. After stating the generalities of the research in the first part, the second part of this research examines the legal aspects of reinsurance with an emphasis on life insurance, the performance of life reinsurance in Iran, the management of cedent and acceptance of reinsurance. Also, a review of the reliance coverage of life insurance products and the clauses related to the insolvency of the ceding and reinsurers was done. Examining the demographic pyramid of Iran and the pyramid of the number of issued insurance policies by age, insurance period and insurance policy capital are among the other topics discussed in this section. In the third part of this research, the pathology and identification of gaps and possible problems in the field of life insurance coverage were discussed using the Delphi method and experts' opinion. Sampling in this section started with the targeted initial sample, including central insurance managers, some life insurance managers and reinsurance managers. In the following, based on the analysis of the interviews and the results of the second part of the research, a questionnaire was prepared and sent to a considerable number of managers of the insurance industry. The fourth part deals with the issue that if the takaful framework is launched in the Iranian market, is it possible to use the reliable capacity to cover risk in this framework? And finally, in the fifth section, summary and suggestions are presented.
Keywords: risk management, life insurance, reinsurance, Iran Insurance Industry