ANNOUNCEMENTS
Key Takeaways from Diesta at Insurtech Insights 2026
30 March 2026
·
4 min read
Executive Summary
Hosted at the InterContinental London, The O2, the event brought together over 6,000 attendees from across brokers, MGAs, insurers, reinsurers, startups and technology providers to explore the future of the industry.
For Diesta, exhibiting at this year’s conference was not just about presence, but about perspective. Across two days and many conversations with people working across different parts of insurance, several clear themes and recurring pain points emerged. Taken together, they point to a broader shift in the market: insurance innovation is moving from experimentation to execution, and operational value is becoming the real measure of progress.
1. From Experimentation to Execution
One of the clearest messages from the conversations we had was that insurtech is entering a new phase. The focus is no longer on what is possible, but on what delivers measurable value.
There is increasing pressure on brokers, MGAs, insurers and partners to demonstrate ROI from technology investments, with greater emphasis on practical use cases, implementation and proven outcomes. Innovation is still a priority, but the market is becoming more disciplined in how it evaluates it. The firms that stand out are no longer those with the most ideas or pilots, but those that can embed technology into day-to-day operations and show tangible results.
At Diesta, this aligns strongly with our own view of the market: the next phase of innovation will be defined by practical, scalable solutions that integrate into existing workflows rather than add further complexity.
Artificial intelligence dominated the agenda, but the conversation has clearly matured. The focus is shifting away from AI as a headline topic and towards how it can be used in live operational settings to improve speed, accuracy and control.
A particularly interesting theme was the rise of more agentic and autonomous systems that can actively support premium processing, reconciliation and payouts. At the same time, many brokers, MGAs and insurers acknowledged a familiar challenge: the gap between ambition and execution. In many cases, the barrier is not interest in AI itself, but the underlying readiness of data, workflows and governance.
This is where the conversation is becoming more practical. AI will only create value if it can operate within well-structured processes and on top of reliable data foundations. For the insurance market, that means the real opportunity is not simply adopting AI, but operationalising it in a controlled, explainable and genuinely useful way.
2. From Buzzword to Operational Backbone
Another major theme from Insurtech Insights was the growing need for stronger credit control and better solutions to reduce aged debt. Many brokers, MGAs and insurers spoke about limited visibility into outstanding payments, slow collections processes and the operational burden of chasing overdue premiums. What has traditionally been seen as a back-office issue is becoming a much more strategic concern because of its direct impact on cash flow predictability, working capital and financial performance.
There was clear demand for more proactive and automated approaches that allow teams to monitor receivables in real time, prioritise collections more effectively and intervene earlier. This reflects a wider shift in the market: finance operations are moving higher up the strategic agenda, particularly where inefficiencies directly affect growth and resilience.
For Diesta, this reinforces the importance of creating greater transparency and control around financial operations. Businesses that can reduce aged debt and improve receivables visibility will be in a much stronger position to operate efficiently and scale with confidence.
A key takeaway from Diesta exhibiting at Insurtech Insights was the growing demand for better data visibility across the entire insurance premium processing lifecycle. Many conversations highlighted how fragmented systems and manual processes still limit brokers’, MGAs’ and insurers’ ability to access real-time, accurate financial data.
A major recurring pain point was the fact that banking data is often spread across multiple platforms, making it difficult to build a single, reliable view of cash flow, payment status and reconciliation. This fragmentation slows decision-making, increases operational effort and makes it harder to maintain control.
The market is increasingly recognising that better visibility is not just a reporting benefit, but an operational advantage. Firms that can unify financial and operational data will be better placed to reduce delays, minimise errors and respond faster.
This is one of the clearest areas where modern infrastructure matters. End-to-end visibility across the premium processing lifecycle does not just improve efficiency; it gives teams the confidence to make better decisions, with better data, at the right time.
4. New and Efficient Digital Operations
A major takeaway from Insurtech Insights was the urgency of replacing outdated, manual operations with more efficient digital processes. Many brokers, MGAs and insurers are still heavily reliant on spreadsheets, manual reconciliation and fragmented legacy workflows. These ways of working continue to create delays, increase error rates and limit scalability.
As the industry evolves, there is growing recognition that these approaches are no longer sustainable. What may once have been tolerated as operational complexity is increasingly being seen as a barrier to growth. Legacy finance and payment operations are not just inefficient; they can actively hold businesses back.
Transitioning to digital-first operations enables automation, improves accuracy and reduces operational overhead, allowing teams to focus on more strategic and value-driven work. For Diesta, this highlights a clear opportunity across the market: helping brokers, MGAs and insurers modernise payment operations in a way that is practical, controlled and scalable.
Final Thoughts
Overall, Insurtech Insights 2026 reinforced that the insurance industry is at a pivotal point of transformation. The focus has clearly shifted towards tangible outcomes, operational efficiency and scalable innovation. Across the event, the recurring themes all pointed to a common challenge: bridging the gap between fragmented legacy processes and the need for more streamlined, data-driven operations.
For Diesta, these insights strongly validate the importance of what we are building. As the market evolves, the firms that will be best positioned to grow are those that modernise core operations, improve financial visibility and turn automation into measurable operational value.
The clearest message from the event was this: the next phase of insurance innovation will not be defined by ideas alone, but by execution. Those who can simplify premium processing, make better use of data and build efficient, scalable workflows will be in the strongest position to compete.
