For Sylvie Gleises, head of marketing at insurer Axa Art, the problem is all too familiar. A fire sweeps through the home of an art collector, reducing their treasured hoard to ashes. But they find that not only have the much-loved artworks gone up in flames, so have their documents of ownership, tucked away in a drawer in the same home. Proving the collector’s ownership rights now becomes considerably harder.

But what if the history and proof of their purchases, the provenance of works in their collection and all related legal and insurance documents were held on a permanent, trusted database to which the collector and trusted advisers could gain access via a secure key?

“If you have all the certificates and no questions about provenance and authenticity, then it’s easy for us to settle the claim,” says Gleises.