Igloo has offices in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Malaysia and tech centers in China and India. With a mission of making insurance accessible for all, the firm leverages big data, real-time risk assessment, and end-to-end automated claims management to create B2B2C insurance solutions for platform companies and insurance companies.
The Philippines is highly vulnerable to tropical cyclones, floods, and landslides due to its exposure to extensive coastal areas where all major cities are located, and the majority of the population lives. Here, Igloo offers an insurance program for natural disasters in partnership with Rafi Micro-Finance Inc., a local microfinance institution with 90% female end clients. In Q1 2022, Igloo’s offering helped about 100.000 poor and vulnerable clients and enabled nearly USD 6 million in payouts following Typhoon Rai, the second costliest typhoon in Philippine history.
“With its expertise, capabilities, and technology to develop products and solutions that directly benefit our target groups, Igloo is well positioned to advance our mission to protect vulnerable communities from the consequences of climate change by strengthening their resilience,” said Mahesh Joshi, Head of Private Equity Investments Asia at BlueOrchard. “We see a profitable, sustainable, and socially responsible business model that we are proud to support.”
The capital provided in this founding round will provide Igloo with additional support for engineering capacity, insurance agency acquisition, and expansion of index-based crop insurance in Southeast Asia. The InsuResilience Investment strategy will appoint a nominee to Igloo’s Board of Directors.
Another key market for Igloo is Vietnam. The country is one of the top five rice exporters in the world, with 95% of exports produced in the Mekong Delta region. However, food production is affected by challenging climate conditions, such as flooding and changing rainfall patterns, leading to yield loss for rice farmers. In Q4 2022, Igloo partnered with PVI Insurance, the leading non-life insurer, Vietnam Meteorological and Hydrological Administration (VMHA), and global reinsurer SCOR to launch blockchain-based weather index insurance for rice farmers in Vietnam. The partnership’s goal is to reach more than 500.000 farmers by 2026.
“We are delighted to be working with BlueOrchard and leveraging their experience in the global insurance sector to increase regional market penetration, especially for poor and vulnerable people. As the pioneer and first-of-its-kind provider of blockchain-based weather index insurance in Vietnam, we look forward to expanding this insurance solution to cover more agricultural communities and take it to other parts of Southeast Asia.” says Raunak Mehta, co-founder and CEO of Igloo.
The investment in Igloo aligns with the vision and principles of the InsuResilience Investment strategy and the InsuResilience Global Partnership IRGP, which was launched at the 2017 UN Climate Conference COP23 by Germany. The vision is to strengthen the resilience of developing countries to the effects of climate change and to protect the livelihoods of poor and vulnerable people against extreme weather events and natural disasters. The objective is to enable more timely and reliable post-disaster response and offer insurance solutions to reduce impacts and help poor and vulnerable people recover more quickly.
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About Igloo
Igloo Igloo is a full stack insurtech startup founded in 2016. It leverages big data, real-time risk assessment and end-to-end automated claims management to create innovative B2B2C insurance solutions for platform partners and insurers. Igloo’s insurance solutions enable companies to eliminate their exposure to operational risk, create new revenue streams and optimise and enhance existing products.
About BlueOrchard Finance Ltd
BlueOrchard is a leading global impact investment manager and member of the Schroders Group. As a pioneering impact investor, the firm is dedicated to generating lasting positive impact for communities and the environment, while aiming at providing attractive returns to investors. BlueOrchard was founded in 2001, by initiative of the UN, as the first commercial manager of microfinance debt investments worldwide. Today, the firm offers impact investment solutions across asset classes, connecting millions of entrepreneurs in emerging and frontier markets with investors with the aim to make impact investment solutions accessible to all and to advance the conscious use of capital. Being a professional investment manager and expert in innovative blended finance mandates, BlueOrchard has a sophisticated international investor base and is a trusted partner of leading global development finance institutions. To date, BlueOrchard has invested over USD 10 billion across more than 105 countries. Over 255 million poor and vulnerable people in emerging and frontier markets received access to financial and related services with the support of BlueOrchard as of June/November 2022. For additional information, please visit: www.blueorchard.com.
For further information, please contact:
Tahmina Theis
+41 22 596 47 69
tahmina.theis@blueorchard.com
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