Kenyan startup Turaco secures Ksh.1.2B funding

The startup, which uses both B2B and B2B2C approaches to drive insurance take-up across Kenya, Uganda and Nigeria, was founded in 2019 by Ted Pantone and Peter Gross.

Turaco creates customised life, asset, and vehicle insurance packages through partnerships with top tech-enabled companies with a large pool of customers or staff in emerging markets, acting as a distributor, broker, and key customer interface between the underwriter and the end consumer. 

The equity round was led by AfricInvest, through its Cathay Africinvest Innovation Fund (CAIF), and Novastar Ventures. Enza Capital, Global Partnerships, Zephyr Acorn, Operator Stack, Asi Ventures Limited and Push Ventures, also participated in the round.

“We are proud to help drive insurance adoption, especially among low-income earners. 90 per cent of our customers have never had insurance before, but the surprising thing is that people really want to buy insurance. They just don’t have easy access to products that really work for them. This investment enables us to scale our business to serve millions of insurance customers across our current markets and beyond. We are thrilled to have these great new investors join our team for this next season of growth,” Pantone, who is also Turaco’s CEO, said.

This brings to Ksh.1.6 billion ($13.3 million) the total funding raised by the startup, which also boast of having so far partnered with notable regional brands such as Sun King, One Acre Fund, Tugende, M-KOPA and VisionFund. 

“We want to insure a billion people in the next 25 years and that’s what we’re building towards… I have a clear vision of insuring 100 million people. Getting to that next stage of growth means working with some of the largest brands in the world,” Pantone further told American outlet TechCrunch.

“We have the right mix of talent, ambition, technology and vision to get us there. But it’s a long road ahead of us for sure.”

Turaco designs and distributes its insurance products “as a white-labelled offering” in partnership with its customers, who buy life, asset, medical and motor insurance from as low as Ksh. 24 ($0.2) per month.

The company says it has so far reached over 500,000 customers, 268,000 of whom are active. 

While claiming a 50 percent conversion rate for its partnerships, Turaco says Its users have grown 300% since 2020.