Singapore-based InsurTech startup anycover has raised $450,000 in a pre-seed funding round led by Powerhouse Ventures.
The round also saw participation from 1337 Ventures, with backing from angel investors Walter de Oude (the founder and former CEO of Singlife) and Khairil Abdullah (Veon Ventures’ CEO and the former chairman of Axiata Boost).
Founded in 2021 by BharadwAj and co-founder Jan Rothkegel, anycover strives to transform the traditional extended warranties game by providing small and medium-sized online merchants with a plug-and-play API solution that enables them to easily launch and manage their own extended warranty programmes without having to create them from scratch.
While many large retailers have already implemented successful digital extended warranty programs, anycover said that small and medium-sized merchants face significant roadblocks in setting up their own due to long commercial onboarding times and minimum premium requirements by insurers.
“This is a missed opportunity as these programs help merchants generate incremental revenue, boost conversion, and increase customer loyalty,” the company said.
anycover explained it addresses these challenges by streamlining the onboarding process and pre-negotiating terms with leading insurers.
The startup is looking to launch its product by the third quarter of this year in Singapore, with future plans to expand into Malaysia and Indonesia towards the end of the year.
Bharad Ogirala, co-founder and CEO of anycover, said, “The e-commerce space in Southeast Asia is expected to double in gross merchandise value by 2025, while insurance penetration remains low. We believe that our solution is now more relevant than ever as the recent direct-to-consumer shift has created a sellers boom, which further intensifies an already competitive landscape and requires merchants to differentiate. Our mission is clear – to support small and medium-sized merchants in successfully growing their online business by providing a value-added service centered around elevating the customer experience.”
Elsewhere in Asia, InsurTech Amplify Health was established earlier in the year. Launched by AIA Group Limited, the InsurTech set out to transform how individuals, corporates, and providers manage health insurance.
Lee Yuan Siong, AIA group chief executive and president, said at the time that the need for better healthcare combined with the “fundamental drivers” of growth in Asia, present an “extraordinary opportunity” to the InsurTech.
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