Just under a year after French insurance technology unicorn Alan entered Canada, it has raised 100 million euros ($157 million CAD) to entrench itself in the country.
Alan says it’s now licensed nationwide and serves more than 1,600 workers across Canada.
Alan announced the fresh funding round, which valued the company at more than five billion euros, on Wednesday morning. The round was led by Index Ventures through its growth fund, with participation from other international investment firms and angel investors, including prominent Canadian tech leaders like Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke and Wealthsimple CEO Mike Katchen.
In a news release, Alan said the fresh round follows a strong year of growth, reaching 785 euros million in annual recurring revenue and achieving operational profitability in its largest market, France. The funding will be used to continue Alan’s international expansion, including in Canada, where it launched last April with the intention of bringing more competition to the country’s health insurance market.
Founded in 2016, Alan sells health insurance to employers and provides virtual healthcare to their employees through its app. Workers can chat with doctors, order prescription glasses, and access preventative care. The company says it serves more than one million workers across 37,000 companies in France, Belgium, Spain, and Canada.
Alan has previously received investment from a large Canadian backer, the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board. Its venture arm, Teachers’ Venture Growth, led its 2022 Series E financing and participated in its Series F round.
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Currently running its Canadian operations out of Toronto, Alan said it plans to expand to Montréal and to continue hiring for its Canadian team. BetaKit has reached out for more details on Alan’s hiring goals. Alan’s general manager of Canada, Mark Goad, told BetaKit last year that it intended to grow its local workforce to 50 over the next four years.
In a statement following this week’s fundraise, Alan co-founder and CEO Jean-Charles Samuelian-Werve called Canada “an important long-term market” for the company.
“Employers and employees here are looking for a simpler way to access and use their health benefits,” Samuelian-Werve said. “We believe there is a real opportunity to bring a more transparent and accessible approach to healthcare in Canada.”
Samuelian-Werve is also a co-founding adviser and board member at French AI company Mistral AI, which was valued at 11.7 billion euros last year.
When Alan launched in Canada, its plans were initially only available in Ontario and Alberta while the company waited for approval in British Columbia and Québec. Following this latest round, Alan said it’s now licensed nationwide and serves more than 1,600 workers across Canada, including those working for early customers like Rates.ca and Venn.
In addition to hiring in Canada, Alan said it plans to add more health services and flexible benefits options for employers to its platform.
Feature image courtesy Alan.