Vancouver-based insurtech startup Apollo Insurance Solutions has secured Series B financing from Definity Financial Corporation. The amount of the raise was not disclosed, while the round closed in early March, but was noted to be a minority investment.
The investment is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close during the second quarter of 2022. An indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Definity will carry out the transaction, which will be financed from cash on hand.
Definity Financial Corporation, which trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange, defines itself as a multi-channel insurance company, and claims to offer Canada’s first fully online personal insurance offering, along with a digital broker platform.
Apollo claims it has a user base of more than 6,000 individual independent Canadian brokers and over 150 group partners.
Apollo said the partnership with Definity will provide it with the resources and opportunities to expand in the small to medium-sized business market.
David Dyck, Apollo’s VP of marketing and PR, told BetaKit the fresh funds would go towards building out its technology platform to better support the startup’s users and partners.
Broker partners and customers can purchase insurance online through Apollo’s automated platform. The startup said it uses data and algorithms to quote, collect payment, and issue policies. Apollo provides insurance in every province of Canada, except Québec.
“This transaction provides a unique opportunity for us to accelerate our digital ambitions in commercial insurance by partnering with an entrepreneurial management team focused on growth,” said Fabian Richenberger, executive vice-president, commercial insurance at Definity.
Richenberger said that he believed that Apollo’s technology platform, combined with Definity’s digital channel experience and underwriting capabilities, will enable Apollo to offer a broader range of commercial coverage.
Dyck noted the partnership will result in more digital insurance products from Apollo as well.
Apollo claims it has a user base of more than 6,000 individual independent Canadian brokers and over 150 group partners.
Founded in 2017, Apollo launched its platform in 2019. The launch followed the startup’s $1 million CAD angel round of funding in 2019; Apollo secured a $13.5 million CAD Series A funding round in 2021.
Apollo is also ranked as the fourth on a list of the top 10 insurtechs in Canada to watch, according to Insurance Business Canada. Dream Payments, League, and Mojio were respectively third, second, and first (Mojio is a connected car startup, but also offers auto insurance coverage).
In a 2020 report titled Status of the Canadian Insurtech Landscape, Luge Capital said that it was currently tracking more than 150 insurtech startups founded between 2000 and 2020.
Luge Capital placed Apollo in the category of digital augmentation, which it defined as “startups that enable or improve the digital distribution capabilities of incumbent brokers and carriers, or digitally augment the internal operations of these entities.”
As for Definity, in its full-year 2021 financial results, it reported that its total equity increased by $578.3 million to approximately $2.4 billion. The company attributed the growth to net income and net proceeds from its initial public offering and related transactions. Definity went public in November, 2021.
Feature image courtesy Unsplash.