Finnfund invests in regional insurtech Igloo to increase the insurance coverage in Southeast Asia

Finnfund is one of the investors in a financing package led by The InsuResilience Investment Fund II, initiated by German development bank KfW and managed by impact investor BlueOrchard Finance Ltd. The 27 million US dollar investment in regional insurtech Igloo brings the company closer to its vision of enabling ‘Insurance for All’. Igloo facilitates digital insurance products and solutions that address each step of the insurance value chain across Southeast Asia.

With 50% of Igloo’s team committed to research & development, the company plans to double down on attracting the best engineering, product, design and data talent across all geographies. Igloo is also in the process of identifying and closing on various M&A opportunities.

“With its expertise, capabilities and technology to develop products and solutions that directly benefit our target groups, Igloo is well positioned to advance our mission to protect vulnerable communities from the consequences of climate change by strengthening their resilience”, said Mahesh Joshi, Head of Private Equity Investments Asia at BlueOrchard. “We see a profitable, sustainable and socially-conscious business model that we are proud to back.”

”Finnfund is devoted to increasing the insurance coverage in the emerging markets through its investments”, said Ulla-Maija Rantapuska, Investment Manager at Finnfund. “We believe that digital insurance solutions can help break some of the barriers to inclusive insurance and we are looking forward to a partnership with Igloo as we share the same goal: making insurance accessible and affordable for all.”

The latest funding round marks the confidence that investors have in the continued stellar performance of Igloo as it brings insurance coverage to large uninsured and underinsured segments in Southeast Asia.

To date, Igloo has been on a strong growth trajectory having cemented partnerships with over 55 companies across 7 countries and over 15 products in its expanding product suite. It has facilitated over 300 million policies and increased gross written premiums by 30 times since 2019. Since its inception, Igloo has been making insurance accessible and affordable through data and technology in Southeast Asia, and is the only insurtech in the region with all major economies contributing to its performance.

Through its work, Igloo also contributes to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, such as financial inclusion, poverty alleviation, socio-economic development, gender equality, among others. For instance, in the Philippines, the regional insurtech supports women entrepreneurs with credit line insurance via its partnership with Philinsure. It has also been at the forefront of addressing underinsurance for gig economy segments by providing comprehensive and competitively-priced insurance for delivery riders, through its Foodpanda partnerships in Thailand, Singapore, and the Philippines, as well as Lozi and Ahamove in Vietnam.

Just recently, Igloo launched its first parametric Weather Index Insurance product to Vietnam – one of the top five rice exporting countries. Utilizing blockchain-based smart contracts the product automates claims payouts calculated using pre-assigned values for losses due to weather events or natural calamities – alleviating the loss of yield and livelihoods that paddy farmers face during adverse weather events. It is Vietnam’s first parametric insurance and the company’s first integration of smart contracts into insurance.

“The support from our investors underlines the value of our technology proposition in bringing a transformation in the industry towards addressing protection for underserved communities, especially gig economy workers and MSMEs. As a leading insurtech firm in Southeast Asia, building sustainable ecosystems is a prerequisite for us. We are now well positioned to leverage our expertise and accelerate our growth across the region and further strengthen our products and services portfolio that addresses the traditional insurance gaps”, said Raunak Mehta, Co-Founder and CEO, Igloo.

More information:
Investment Manager Ulla-Maija Rantapuska, tel. +358 41 536 5631, ulla-maija.rantapuska (a) finnfund.fi

About Igloo

Igloo is the first full-stack insurtech firm to emerge from Singapore. It has offices in Singapore, Indonesia,  Thailand,  The  Philippines,  Vietnam  and  Malaysia  and  tech  centres in China and India.  With a mission of making insurance accessible for all, the firm leverages big data, real-time risk assessment, and end-to-end automated claims management to create B2B2C insurance solutions for platform companies and insurance companies. Igloo’s insurance solutions enable companies  to  eliminate  their  exposure  to operational  risk,  create  new  revenue  streams,  and optimise  and  enhance  existing  products  and  services.  Igloo  has  partnered  with  over  55  well-known   brand   names   across   the   markets   in   various   verticals,   including   insurance, telecommunications, e-commerce, hospitality, health tech and financial services. For more information, please visit https://www.iglooinsure.com/