Kenyan insurtech startup Lami Technologies has acquired Bluewave Insurance Agency for an undisclosed amount as it seeks to make insurance covers accessible to more people across Africa.
Bluewave insurance, also a Kenyan startup, was founded by Adelaide Odhiambo, who now joins Lami as the head of commercial partnerships.
Since its launch in 2016, Bluewave has invested in building technology for its online platform that enables its clients to access micro-insurance products through diverse channels such as USSD, SMS, WEB Applications, IVR, telemedicine, mobile application support medical business among others.
The deal has also opened up new markets for Lami in Malawi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where Bluewave already has operations.
By having access to Malawi, for instance, Lami will tap thousands of smallholder farmers, including the 60,000 already on Bluewave’s database.
Lami Technologies founder and CEO Jihan Abass, during an interview about the acquisition, told TechCrunch that, “One of the things that really made us excited about this opportunity was the fact that we are working towards a very common vision of democratizing access to insurance. Our visions were very much aligned.”
“The Bluewave team had created modules (like USSD-based micro-insurance products), which we felt could particularly enhance our B2B2C offerings. They’ve done quite a lot of work around claims modules for micro insurance products. All these different things can be integrated into the core Lami platform. We can also continue to build on top of it, and also use parts of our technology to enhance offerings, like our advanced pricing modules, to make that experience much better,” said Abass.
Through the new partnership, Lami will integrate and repurpose Bluewaves technology into its core technology platform enhancing its B2B2C capabilities for partners and customers while introducing features such as USSD, WhatsApp bots, and claims dashboards.
Bluewave will continue to own its entity despite the acquisition. Through the acquisition, Lami will take over the Bluewave team and commercial partnerships to continue operations.
Africa’s insurance market stands at a 3% penetration rate, per a McKinsey study in 2018 comparing six insurance regions on the continent. If the South African market is excluded, this number drops to a measly 1.12%.
Last year Lami Technologies, raised $1.8 million in seed money and sought to change the narrative.
The round was led by Accion Venture Lab, a seed-stage investment firm that supports financial services targeted at underserved markets. Other VCs that participated include AAIC, Consonance, P1 Ventures, Acuity Ventures, The Continent Venture Partners and Future Africa.
