Rostock, Germany, 5th March : Hepster –the first-of-its-kind insurtech platform that helps firms in established and nascent sectors build bespoke, simple to understand policies for customers – has raised $10 million in Series A funding, led by Element Ventures [now 13books]. Seventure Partners and previous investors MBMV and GPS Ventures also participated in the round.
Established in 2016 to shake up the slow, encumbered insurance market – a market which still largely relies on centuries-old practices and which has failed to adapt adequately to the rise of new and exciting digital business models such as sharing and renting – Hepster’s mission was to create an agile, fully digital, API-driven platform that fits policies to customers, and not the other way round.
Hepster enables businesses to build insurance policies from scratch, tailoring them to the exact needs of their individual service or industry. Hepster’s toolkit allows companies to embed these insurance products into their wider e-commerce journey. Thus creating a frictionless and positive experience for customers, Hepster’s solution creates an additional revenue stream for the business itself. It’s such a win-win situation that the embedded insurance market is expected to be worth $3 trillion by 2030.
How Hepster’s specialised, insurance toolkit changes the game
Hepster’s first-of-its-kind approach to both building and selling insurance policies has proved crucial throughout 2020. For new and innovative business models, such as shared e-bike schemes and peer-to-peer rental platforms, companies require highly specialised terms and conditions that aren’t available via traditional brokers. For established industries, Hepster offers the complete insurance package which can be embedded in the customer journey.
Since 2017, more than 700 partners have used Hepster’s platform to provide more than 200 products to around 70,000 customers, focusing on areas such as (micro-)mobility, electronics, sports equipment and travel. Hepster is helping to provide a solution to all companies, ensuring they can offer the right product with the corresponding insurance policy at the right time and prevent liability from ever becoming an additional business risk.
Hepster is leading the embedded insurance opportunity – for both businesses and consumers:
The demand for embedded insurance, as part of the wider trend of embedded finance, has skyrocketed in recent years. Consumers are becoming increasingly tech-savvy and have higher expectations for services. They want to be able to buy insurance at the same time as buying a car, be automatically covered when hiring a bike, or cancel subscriptions via their online banking app without having to switch between websites, providers and login screens. In the Property and Casualty sectors alone, embedded insurance is set to account for over $700 billion in Gross Written Premiums – or a quarter of the total market worldwide – over the next 10 years. For insurers it creates the potential for lower-cost distribution to more individuals and firms, access to more data to enhance product innovation and reduced underwriting risks.
By combining its 100% flexible, digital and secure approach to insurance with its focus on embedded insurance, Hepster is the go-to choice for companies looking to diversify their portfolio or established businesses which require transparency of their full insurance journey.
For instance, with Hepster an e-bike rental company will provide insurance automatically to a customer, as part of the package of renting one of its bikes instead of the customer seeking out an insurance product separately. This insurance product will be tailored to the needs of the rental company’s client group: from time period to the services and exclusions, as well as the cost. The policy can then be purchased automatically during the renting process and all necessary documents are delivered in real-time.
In 2020 alone, Hepster’s revenue grew 600% thanks to partnerships with leading innovators such as micro-mobility companies, including European bike retailers and rental companies Greenstorm Mobility and Baron Mobility (mein-dienstrad.de), as well as Berlin-based cargo bike provider Citkar and Munich e-bike startup SUSHI. As the coronavirus pandemic created an urgent need for alternative transport options, these startups – with the support of Hepster – were able to address these needs and changing market conditions.
To power this growth in demand, Hepster has raised $10 million from Element Ventures [now 13books], Seventure Partners and previous investors MBMV and GPS Venture. The funding will be used to scale up the Hepster platform and expand the ecosystem with a focus on automation to ensure more partners can provide essential insurance products to more customers.
Christian Range, Hepster co-founder and CEO, said: “Hepster is now a key player within the European insurance market. Our state-of-the-art technology with our API-driven ecosystem as well as our highly service-oriented approach sets us apart, not just from classic insurers but other insurtechs as well. We are extremely proud of what our talented team has achieved in recent years and we look forward to continuing our commitment to creating the best insurance experiences for customers and partners with our new and existing investors.”
Michael McFadgen, partner at Element Ventures [now 13books], said: “As new industries and business models emerge, companies need much more flexible insurance propositions than what is currently being offered by traditional brokers. Hepster is the breakout company in the space, and their focus on embedded insurance will pay dividends in years to come. The team has created a brilliant platform and the exceptional results so far show that we’re not the only ones to think so. We’re excited to work together with the Hepster team as they provide businesses with a genuine alternative in an otherwise stagnant insurance market”.
Andreas Schenk, Venture Partner Germany for Digital Technologies at Seventure Partners, said: “Hepster is a perfect fit for our portfolio. Its combination of innovative technology and a wide portfolio of add-on insurance products is unique and represents the values we seek in our partners. We are convinced that Hepster has what it takes to tear down the old ways of the insurance industry and further establish itself as one of the top players in the European market.”
Contact
Harry Ashcroft: harry@burlington.cc / 07429 108277
About Hepster
Founded in 2016, Hepster provides an API-driven insurance product toolkit to help companies in established and nascent industries access, provide and sell hyper-specialised insurance policies, with an aim to create the best experience for customers and partners within the insurance industry. Hepster’s portfolio includes mobility, electronics, equipment, travel and basic insurance, with over 700 partners creating more than 200 insurance products for 70,000+ customers since 2017. So far Hepster has received 10+ awards for its excellent customer service, price performance and insurance benefits. Buchung.hepster.com, business.hepster.com
About Element Ventures [now 13books]
Element Ventures [now 13books] is a global venture capital fund investing in B2B financial technology companies. Element Ventures [now 13books]’s partners are proud to have backed some of the best founders and companies in the industry. Element Ventures [now 13books]’s mission is to back the bold founders building tomorrow’s financial technology. Element Ventures [now 13books]ventures.vc
