Octamile, a Nigerian insurtech firm that helps insurance and non-insurance companies shield African clients from financial loss, has raised $500,000 in pre-seed investment.
The Octamile solution allows non-insurance firms to include insurance as a feature in their existing offerings, while insurance providers get the data and technology, they need to improve customer experience, save administrative costs, and increase the profitability of their insurance portfolio.
The firm has been in secret mode until recently, but after receiving a US $500,000 pre-seed fundraising round, it has finally officially debuted. Fiat Ventures, Kesho VC, Trade X, Verraki Partners, Dale Mathias, Kyle Daley, and several local and international angels were among those who participated in the round, which was headed by EchoVC Partners.
“Insurance is one sector that has the power to elevate the economy, but only about five out of 100 Africans have any form of insurance protection. The industry has lagged in the use of technology to deliver better products and services,” said Gbenro Dara, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Octamile, who has spent the last decade in leading roles at various technology startups, including Jumia, MyAutoGenius, Hotels.ng and Cheki.
“Our team has identified key areas where we add value and support the growth of the Insurance ecosystem with data and technology by partnering with traditional insurance businesses and non-insurance businesses.”
Octamile describes itself as the “operating system backbone for digital insurance in Africa,” with features such as digital claims, enhanced risk assessment, and embedded insurance APIs.
“Our goal over the next months will be to work closely with our partners, which include AXAMansard, and FirstBank, and onboard the dozens of insurers and startups on the waitlist ready to leverage the power of our solutions,” said Dara.
