Lami Technologies, a startup based in Kenya, has received $1.8 million in seed money.
The round was led by Accion Venture Lab and included other VCs like AAIC, Consonance, P1 Ventures, Acuity Ventures, The Continent Venture Partners and Future Africa.
"By embedding customized insurance within businesses that customers know and trust, Lami is making insurance accessible for underserved populations in Africa and enabling them to build financial resilience.”
According to a 2018 McKinsey study, Africa’s insurance market stands at a 3% penetration rate. The figure looks less impressive when you exclude the South African market. The number drops to 1.12%.
In contrast to other parts of the world, insurance providers in Africa ignore the importance of customized and affordable insurance products to the average African consumer. This problem is what Lami set out to solve.
The company was founded in 2018 by Jihan Abass aims to democratize insurance products in Kenya.
“For us, the main problem we wanted to solve was that 97% of Africans don’t buy insurance. We were trying to understand the methodology behind that, especially in Kenya where there are over 50 insurance companies but the penetration level is 2.4%. The driving force for us was making insurance widely available. We felt that building the technological infrastructure to facilitate the distribution of insurance was the best way to increase the penetration level in Africa.” CEO of Lami Technologies Jihan Abass
Since its (Lami Technologies) inception, the insurtech startup has sold more than 5,000 policies. It has partnered with more than 25 active underwriters, including Britam, Pioneer and Madison Insurance. These underwriters help distribute more than 30 products, from medical and employee benefits to motor and device insurance.
Lami will use the seed investment to hire more people, improve its technology and grow its presence across Africa.
Kenya in focus
GDP: $95.503 Billion compared to Rwanda's $10.354 Billion in 2019
Population: 52,573,973 compared to Rwanda's 12,626,950 in 2019
GDP per capita: $1,816 compared to Rwanda's $820 in 2019
