Igloo raises $8.2 million

In early 2019, Singapore-based insurance startup Axinan introduced Igloo, a new “on-demand lifestyle insurance app” to protect phone screens with coverage underwritten by FWD Singapore. Now, the company is announcing that it’s adopting the Igloo name along with the closing of an extended Series A round totaling $8.2 million. The round was led by InVent, the corporate venture capital arm of Intouch Holdings, an asset management and investment company serving the telecommunications, media, and technology sectors. Existing investors Openspace Ventures and Linear Capital, along with new investors Singtel Innov8, Cathay Innovation and Partech Partners also participated in the round.

Igloo, which was founded by Wei Zhu who previously served as CTO at Grab, works with e-commerce and travel players in Southeast Asia including Bhinneka, Bukalapak, Lazada, RedDoorz, Shippit, and Shopee to offer insurance products in different categories including electronics, home, personal accident and travel. On the insurance side, Igloo partners with different insurers such as Allianz, Baoviet, FWD Singapore, Mercantile, and Sompo.

The ~40-person startup operates in Vietnam, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. Igloo claims that more than 15 million users have “benefited” from its insurance products to date, and in the last one year it has processed more than 50 million transactions.

“With COVID-19 impacting every facet of personal life and business, digitization can help the world adjust to the new normal. This is especially apparent in insurance, where we can tap on digital channels for distribution and also for creating awareness. We see that digital insurance is on the rise in Southeast Asia, and we believe that Igloo, with our digital-first approach and expansion of our product portfolio into personal health, accident and other related products can help fill those gaps and address consumers’ needs for personal well-being.” – Wei Zhu, founder and CEO of Igloo.

“We are extremely excited to welcome Igloo as the first insurtech in our portfolio. Insurtech companies are at the forefront of driving digital transformation in the digital industry, creating innovative products to serve millennials better. We believe that Igloo’s advanced tech stack can drive real change in the industry and bring the focus back to consumers’ needs.” – Dr Narongpon Boonsongpaisan, Head of InVent by Intouch Holdings.