Singapore-based insurtech Igloo has closed a US$36 million pre-Series C funding round to support its regional expansion via strategic acquisitions.
The latest round, led by Eurazeo, through its insurtech fund backed by insurer BNP Paribas Cardif, comes just 10 months after Igloo’s Series B+ fundraise led by BlueOrchard-managed InsuResilience Investment Fund II. In total, the company has raised US$100 million.
Igloo’s pre-Series C round closed at an increased valuation of 50% from its Series B+ round in 2022. The company says it is on track to double its 2022 gross written premiums (GWP) at a low burn rate. And with a robust engineering core and data focus, the company expects to achieve profitability in 2024.
Openspace and La Maison, who participated in the Series B and Series B+ fundraises, again joined the latest round.
Eurazeo invested through its insurtech fund focused on innovative technologies and business ideas disrupting the insurance industry, while Openspace’s investment in the latest round comes via its mid-stage fund OSV+, which is focused on the Series C and D rounds of transformative technology companies in Southeast Asia.
“We have been following Igloo for some time now and have been impressed with their evolution into a diversified insurance platform across channels and products,” says Eurazeo managing director Albert Shyy. “The insurance market in Southeast Asia is still very underpenetrated and we believe Igloo is in a strong position to help solve this by making insurance more easily accessible and understandable for consumers.”
Innovative approach
Investors see a huge potential in Asia's insurance market, where many remain underinsured. Companies like Igloo are attracting investment as their innovative approach addresses pain points across the insurance value chain for insurers, sales intermediaries, retailers and consumers.
In 2022, Igloo launched a digital platform that seeks to enhance the productivity of sales intermediaries in Vietnam and Indonesia. Ignite by Igloo works with 22,000 sales intermediaries and agent partners and aims to close 2023 with 50,000 agents as it expands into other markets.
In line with Ignite by Igloo’s aim to improve financial inclusion for underserved segments, over 60% of the platform’s intermediary partners are female.
Igloo has also rolled out weather index insurance, which provides blockchain-based parametric insurance for farmers. The payout is based on an index, such as the amount of rainfall, rather than on the impact of the weather itself. The scheme has already attracted thousands of farmers since its launch in November 2022 and covers 20,000 hectares of coffee and padi fields.
Igloo has facilitated more than 500 million policies, and established over 75 partnerships across six countries, expanding its product offerings to cover consumer finance, e-commerce, and logistics.
The new funding will go towards both horizontal and vertical M&A opportunities, after the firm added intermediary licences across Southeast Asia this year, in addition to its licence in Indonesia. It also plans to increase its workforce by 20%.
