Biz Builder Mike

You can't sail Today's boat on Yesterdays wind - Michael Noel

InsurTech NY Announces 2020 Accelerator Cohort

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InsurTech NY, an insurtech community that is located in the New York metro area, recently announced its growth-stage InsurTech accelerator cohort.

According to Insurtech NY,  the program will focus on growth-stage startups that have existing customers and range in funding stage between Seed and Series B. It will be open to InsurTechs around the world. David Gritz, InsurTech NY Managing Director, previously explained:

“The InsurTech NY accelerator will focus on the critical moment in time for startups when they are crossing the chasm. Many InsurTechs are able to build a product and get their initial customers; however, the true test is how to scale their business. Our program is about helping InsurTechs to get to scale.”

InsurTech NY also revealed 22 startups were selected to participate in its insurance carrier and broker sponsored program that focuses on providing resources to support traction, talent, and financing. The program will provide access to insurance carriers and brokers looking to deploy new technologies and provide financial backing to digital managing general agencies (MGAs).

Selected startups include:

  • Life and Annuities Lines: Amenity Analytics, Best Fit, Breathe Life, Everyday Life, Fenris, Gerald App, Insurmi, IXN, Sensely, Sorcero, and Vymo
  • Property and Casualty Lines: Assurely, Dealer Policy, Ecopia, GradientAI, Guardhog, Harbor.ai, Honcho, Neural Metrics, Pinpoint Predictive, Relay, and TrustLayer

InsurTech NY added that for traction, 18 member corporations will work closely with the startups to establish proof of concepts and partnerships. For talent acquisition, startups will be invited to present at the InsurTech Matchmaking Expo on October 29th.

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U.S. Insurtech Next Insurance Announces Expansion of Workers’ Compensation to 24 Additional States

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Next Insurance, an insurtech seeking to transform small business insurance, announced on Wednesday the availability of its Workers’ Compensation offering to 24 additional states across the nation, which includes Alabama, Iowa, Louisiana, and Virginia.

“Workers’ Compensation is essential not only for high-risk jobs like those in construction where physical injuries can be more frequent, but also for relatively safer occupations where slip-and-fall accidents and strains can occur. Offering coverage that starts at just $14 per month, Next Insurance is helping to solve an often stressful and costly insurance requirement by giving business owners a seamless way to obtain an instant quote and explore their coverage options – all online.”

Next Insurance further explained that the expansion increases the company’s overall Workers’ Compensation coverage in the US to more than 50% now equipping small business owners in 30 states with affordable, hassle-free policies that protect them and their employees from financial harm while meeting state requirements. Speaking about the expansion, Sofya Pogreb, COO of Next Insurance, stated:

“This expansion helps us provide simpler and more affordable solutions for Workers’ Compensation, which is far too often one of the largest operational expenses for small business owners. Now, small businesses can easily protect employees while complying with their state guidelines. We remain dedicated to bringing more benefits to customers, and are working on launching  pay-as-you-go, which fluctuates automatically with your payroll to ensure you never over or under pay.”

Founded in 2016, Next Insurance is on a mission to transform small business insurance with “simple, affordable” coverage that is tailored to the needs of each class of business.

“Next Insurance offers policies that are easy to buy with instant, 24/7, online access to services such as Live Certificates of Insurance, Additional Insured, and more with absolutely no extra fees. Revolutionizing traditional insurance processes, Next Insurance is utilizing advanced technology to offer the industry’s most innovative small business insurance policies.”

Next Insurance recently secured $250 million through its Series D funding round, which was led by CapitalG, Alphabet’s independent growth fund, with participation from FinTLV, a global insurtech VC, and existing investor Munich RE Group. Next Insurance also revealed it has now raised $631 million to bring what it described as simple, affordable, and tailored insurance products to the American small businesses and the self-employed.

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No Code Digital Future: EasySend Raises $16 Million

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EasySend, a company that wants to help insurance companies, banks, and other financial services firms better develop their tech stack with an “AI-powered no-code platform,” has raised $16 million. The Tel Aviv based company reports that the Series A funding was led by Hanaco with participation from Intel Capital.

The new funding follows a previously undisclosed $5 million seed round from existing investors Vertex Ventures and Menora Insurance. The cash infusion will be used to boost staff and offices around the world as well as for further product development.

EasySend’s platform is designed to convert manual processes into “digital journeys” that can be optimized by non-technical staff without any coding via a simple drag and drop interface.

EasySend believes that now more than ever, financial services and insurance companies are searching for ways to digitize their operations effectively.

Tal Daskal, EasySend CEO and co-founder, says the world is changing and COVID has forced traditional businesses to embrace a digital transformation:

“Our no-code platform is uniquely positioned to make this digital transition easier for enterprises from a wide range of industries – especially insurance and financial services – enabling them to create new digital products efficiently and effectively while boosting and creating digital opportunities which not only save on development and maintenance costs, but also drive revenue growth.”

Nick Washburn, senior managing director, Intel Capital, added:

“EasySend’s no-code platform utilizes AI to digitize thousands of forms quickly and easily, reducing development time from months to days, and transforming customer journeys that have been paper-based, inefficient and frustrating. In today’s world, this is more critical than ever before.”

EasySend says it currently works with unnamed leading financial institutions in the U.S.A., Israel, and Europe, including top insurance companies.

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