Igloo Founder and CEO Wei Zhu
Singapore-headquartered insurtech startup Axinan has rebranded to Igloo even as it has announced the closing of its undisclosed Series A-plus funding.
The round was led by InVent, the corporate venture capital arm of Bangkok-based Intouch Holdings, an asset management and investment company serving the telecom, media and tech sectors.
Igloo’s existing investors Openspace Ventures and Shanghai-based Linear Capital, besides new investors Singtel Innov8, Cathay Innovation and Partech Partners, also participated.
The fresh round — which takes Igloo’s total investment raised to date to US$16 million — will fuel its expansion plans into Vietnam, as well as help it strengthen its foothold in the Philippines and Thailand. The money will also help it to double its business development and engineering teams across the region.
In an interview with us in October last year, CEO Wei Zhu said the company was in the midst of raising Series A-plus round.
Incorporated in 2016 by Zhu (formerly CTO of Grab), Igloo focuses on creating “innovative digital insurance for the Internet economy”. It leverages Big Data, real-time risk assessment, and digitised claims management to create B2B2C insurance solutions for online companies and insurance companies.
The insurtech firm works with leading e-commerce and travel players in Southeast Asia, including Bhinneka, Bukalapak, Lazada, RedDoorz, Shippit, and Shopee, as well as regional insurance partners Allianz, Baoviet, FWD Singapore, Mercantile, and Sompo.
At present, Igloo is in advanced discussions with telcos, banks, non-banking financial firms, and online travel agencies (OTAs) in the region to offer products through its marquee insurance partners utilising the state-of-the-art data and technology infrastructure.
Since its founding, Igloo claims its insurance products “have already benefitted over 15 million customers, effectively protecting over 50 million transactions in the past year (February 2019 to February 2020)”. The categories include electronics, home, personal accident and travel.
The company has formally rebranded across all its current markets, including Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Australia. The new brand name was chosen as it is the existing name of the company’s flagship digital insurance product line that caters to Southeast Asia’s growing population of digitally-savvy consumers.
Also Read: How insurtech is changing the game in Southeast Asia
“With COVID-19 impacting every facet of personal life and business, digitisation can help the world adjust to the new normal. This is especially apparent in insurance, where we can tap on digital channels for distribution and also for creating awareness,” said Founder and CEO Zhu.
“We see that digital insurance is on the rise in Southeast Asia, and we believe that Igloo, with our digital-first approach and expansion of our product portfolio into personal health, accident and other related products can help fill those gaps and address consumers’ needs for personal well-being,” he added.
The digital insurance penetration is low in Southeast Asia, at only 6 per cent today. Southeast Asia’s digital insurance sector, currently valued at US$2 billion, is growing and expected to grow to US$8 billion by 2025. This is coupled with an accelerating internet economy that is projected to hit US$300 billion in 2025, according to the eConomy SEA 2019 report.
Image Credit: Igloo
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