This partnership addresses a critical challenge for roofing contractors: reaching a wider customer base by offering a complete solution that includes both insurance claims management and flexible financing options. With the rising costs of materials and labor, homeowners often face significant out-of-pocket expenses after their insurance claims are processed. This partnership allows roofers to offer a more attractive and comprehensive solution, increasing their competitiveness.

“We’re empowering roofers to win more jobs and provide a complete solution to their customers,” said Adam Goodman, Vice President of Partnerships at Momnt. “By combining our financing options with Your Virtual Adjuster’s expertise in insurance claims, we’re enabling homeowners to get their roofs repaired quickly and affordably, even when faced with unexpected costs.”

Roofers can now increase deal closure rates, expand their customer base, improve customer satisfaction, and streamline operations.

“With this collaboration, homeowners can avoid the disruption and financial strain associated with unexpected roof damage,” said Vince. “They can now quickly get their roofs repaired, choose from a range of financing options to cover the out-of-pocket costs, and even finance their deductibles, making the entire process more manageable.”

Momnt’s technology seamlessly integrates with Your Virtual Adjuster’s platform, offering homeowners access to a variety of flexible financing options that can be tailored to their individual needs. This partnership empowers roofers to provide a truly comprehensive service offering, enhancing customer satisfaction and driving business growth.

The post Momnt and Your Virtual Adjuster Join Forces to Bridge the Gap in Roofing Claims appeared first on FF News | Fintech Finance.

By integrating ZestyAI’s advanced property risk insights, Safepoint can assess large property portfolios with greater precision, improving underwriting accuracy and enhancing access to coverage. The partnership also strengthens Safepoint’s loss cost control strategy by leveraging AI-powered analytics to predict and manage risk more effectively. 

With high-resolution aerial imagery and machine learning-driven property insights, Safepoint can refine its inspection process—reducing unnecessary site visits, optimizing resource allocation, and streamlining operations while maintaining rigorous risk assessment standards.

“ZestyAI’s property insights have set a new benchmark for accuracy and innovation,” said David Flitman, CEO of Safepoint Holdings. “The flexibility of their solutions and the ability to evaluate large insured portfolios in a matter of days provide tremendous value to us. This partnership will allow us to better serve our policyholders by proactively managing risk while making our operations more efficient.”

ZestyAI’s Advanced Risk Solutions Adopted by Safepoint:

• Z-PROPERTY Digital Roof: Analyzes key drivers of roof-related risk using AI-powered 3D modeling of high-resolution aerial imagery, improving Safepoint’s risk selection process and optimizing inspections by identifying properties requiring on-site evaluations.
• Z-PROPERTY Location Insights: Provides property-specific risk assessments for over 150 million properties across the U.S., identifying hazards such as overhanging vegetation and lot debris to uncover hidden risks, streamline workflows, and align premiums with actual risk.
• Roof Age: Combines 20+ years of aerial imagery with verified building permit data, achieving 92%+ accuracy in roof age estimation. This eliminates reliance on self-reported or incomplete data, improving pricing precision, reducing claims exposure, and informing eligibility decisions.

“With AI-driven property intelligence, Safepoint can make better risk decisions, lower costs, and expand coverage in high-climate-risk states,” said Attila Toth, Founder and CEO of ZestyAI. “We’re excited to provide the insights Safepoint needs to strengthen underwriting and better serve policyholders.”

This partnership supports Safepoint’s expansion, enabling efficient scaling while maintaining cost-effective, reliable coverage. Safepoint Holdings operates with a combined policyholder surplus of approximately $150 million, with Safepoint Insurance Co. holding $70 million.

Safepoint Holdings

Founded in 2013, Safepoint Holdings, Inc., is a seasoned property and casualty insurance holding company headquartered in Tampa, Florida, with a successful 11-year track record of disciplined underwriting.  The business strategy is to combine sophisticated actuarial analytics and risk management expertise to provide better value to individuals and businesses in underserved U.S. coastal and other catastrophe-prone property markets.  Safepoint Holdings is responsible for the management and operations of three insurance carriers – Safepoint Insurance Company, Cajun Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange, and Manatee Insurance Exchange – with a combined policyholder surplus of $150 million.

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Specifically developed for insurers, Akur8’s pricing solution empowers pricing teams to make better decisions faster, by automating risk modeling using proprietary transparent machine learning technology. The core benefits for insurers include increased predictive performance and speed-to-accuracy for higher market reactivity and immediate business impact, while maintaining full transparency and control of the models created.

Established in 2004 as a short-term insurance administrator for brokers, Alpha Insure has evolved into a key player in the South African insurance market, with an annual Gross Written Premium (GWP) approaching 2 billion Rand. Offering an extensive portfolio of both personal and commercial insurance products, Alpha Insure is dedicated to excellence and innovation, reinforcing its reputation as a trusted partner in risk management across South Africa’s dynamic insurance landscape.

By adopting Akur8’s Pricing platform for its Property & Casualty line of business, Alpha Insure will be equipped with a state-of-the-art, cloud-based solution to support its development in the coming months and years.

“We are excited to begin this new journey with Alpha Insure in South Africa. Two years after we entered the market, this fourth collaboration with a South African Insurer solidifies our position as the leading provider of pricing software for the insurance industry in the region,” said Samuel Falmagne, CEO at Akur8.

“We had an excellent experience during our trial period with Akur8. The platform streamlined every modeling step required, offering an intuitive, user-friendly interface that empowers us to interpret models effectively and make adjustments with ease. We achieved exceptional results in risk model performance, gaining clear visibility into variables and their corresponding coefficients. The platform’s statistical analysis capabilities enabled us to model effectively, even on thin data sets, with transparent indicators of model reliability. Akur8 also streamlined post-modeling analysis, making it easy to build and compare rating models against current pricing strategies, and precisely identify affected populations. The overall process, from data upload to variable selection and statistical examination, proved to be quick and highly efficient, underscoring the platform’s usability and robust functionality,” added James Reid, Actuarial Executive at Alpha Insure.

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The changes planned, which will take effect on 1 March 2025, are as follows:

Javier San Basilio has been appointed general manager of MAPFRE Re, taking on direct coordination of the regional divisions and responsibility for the development of large clients and brokers, among other functions.

The Non-Group business is to be structured through two lines: Non-Life Underwriting and Life Business. Carmen Bueso will head up Non-Life Underwriting and Maite González will lead Life Business, encompassing the Life, Accident and Health businesses, assuming direct coordination of the regional supervisors for the Life business. Both women take on these responsibilities as assistant general managers.

Ricardo Pérez has also been appointed manager of the Iberia/Latam regional area, and he will also join MAPFRE Re’s Management Committee. The different markets MAPFRE Re operates in are structured across four large regional areas: the aforementioned Iberia/Latam, APAC (led by Javier Sánchez Cea), EMEA (led by Mark Meyerhoff) and North America (with Carlos Sanzo as the most senior manager).

Management of the business coming from the MAPFRE Group remains unchanged with Fernando Utrilla at the helm.

A Strategy, Communication, Sustainability and Innovation area has also been created with the objective of projecting an integrated vision of all these areas, and will be led by Juan Satrústegui.

“These changes will enable us to move forward with greater agility and ambition in the MAPFRE Re strategy as we take on even greater challenges in the coming years. We’ll continue boosting the Non-Life business and drive the development of our Life business, where there are still huge growth opportunties,” said Miguel Rosa, CEO of MAPFRE Re.

Leveraging the talent and knowledge of the company’s professionals across the organisation is a key factor in making this change a reality at MAPFRE Re. 

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Companies, and especially SMEs, struggle with manual management of trade insurance policies, which has notoriously led to clerical oversights resulting in coverage lapses, denied claims, and damaging losses. The 40Seas Trade Insurance Management solution greatly simplifies the claims process, helping suppliers to recover payments quickly and efficiently in the event of buyer default. The solution integrates with existing ERP and financial systems, next to the leading insurance carriers, providing real-time insights into outstanding invoices and payment statuses, while facilitating B2B payments processing in multiple currencies.

40Seas Trade Finance supports immediate payment of all insured invoices on the platform, enabling companies to offer extended payment terms of up to 90 days to their customers, without impacting cash flow or absorbing credit risk, so they can focus on driving sales volumes rather than debt collection and underwriting payments. The ability to extend terms securely can also strengthen relationships with buyers, fostering a sense of loyalty and encouraging repeat business.

Suppliers can also leverage 40Seas’ platform for KYB and risk underwriting, helping them make informed decisions about who to extend credit to, and under what terms. Suppliers can set a credit limit for each customer, so when an invoice is issued, the customer can clearly see what their limit is. When they’ve passed the designated credit limit, they know they are obliged to pay the pending invoice up-front, mitigating the risk of payment delays. The platform also collects and presents information needed for limit applications, claims, and other policy management needs.

Within the 40Seas dashboard, if a supplier wants to take out insurance on a customer, they can click ‘apply for insurance’ and then the platform provides an update if the insurer approved it, and for how much. In the event of coverage being discontinued, the 40Seas platform automatically updates the supplier directly. Suppliers can also embed the solution via API to their ERP or internal applications to automate customer onboarding, KYB, risk management, and trade insurance management.

Eyal Moldovan, Co-founder and CEO of 40Seas said: “Imagine a business issuing 200+ invoices to customers each week, offering Net-30 terms. With traditional models, they would have to meticulously check the validity of trade insurance for each client. We are alleviating this significant administrative burden for suppliers, mitigating the risk of payment defaults, while also giving them the safety net to extend payment terms to new buyers – even SMEs without long standing credit histories.”

Izzy Rosenzweig, Founder and CEO of Portless said: “Offering extended payment terms with the backing of 40Seas’ trade insurance empowers us to support our buyers’ financial needs and help them manage their cash flow more effectively. Knowing that payments are secured irrespective of buyer behavior allows us to focus on strategic growth rather than worrying about day-to-day receivables.”

Headquartered in New York with offices in Shenzhen, Toronto and Tel Aviv, 40Seas was founded by industry experts with more than 60 years of combined experience in cross-border payments, logistics, and trade financing.

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The current management team will continue leading the company, driving its development and consolidation as one of the benchmark technology platforms in the insurance sector. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in the first half of 2025.

Founded in 2017 and headquartered in Barcelona, Heymondo offers an innovative digital platform for purchasing and managing travel insurance. Its model is based on a fully digital experience, enabling users to handle claims through its mobile app and ensuring an agile, transparent process tailored to each traveler’s needs. The company currently operates in Spain, Italy, France, Portugal, and the United States. Heymondo was backed by business angels and venture capital funds such as Banco Sabadell, Bankinter, Howzat Partners and the Family Office Cartera de Inversiones CM, all of them will exit after regulatory approval.

Ricard Domenech and David Pérez, co-founders of Heymondo, highlighted: “The support of J.C. Flowers & Co. is a significant boost for our company. We share the vision of offering innovative solutions in the insurance sector, and this agreement will allow us to accelerate our international expansion and further enhance our value proposition and the traveler experience.”

Richard Carrión, Operating Partner of J.C. Flowers & Co, commented: “From the outset, we were very impressed with what the management team has achieved with Heymondo.  We see great potential for continued growth for Heymondo under their continued leadership.”

BlueBull acted as Heymondo’s exclusive financial advisor in this transaction, with RCD serving as the legal advisor.

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In securing its raise, UpCover defied a tumultuous year for the Australian startup industry, doubling its revenue in 2024 and halving its costs. The funds will be used to support UpCover’s growth as it launches new digital insurance products to market in 2025, expanding its offering to over 60,000 businesses already leveraging the UpCover platform

The round — $11 million in equity, $8 million in debt —  was led by RealVC, and supported by a number of local and global investors including Antler Elevate’s Global Fund, Betterlabs and Gandel Invest, the family office run by Tony and Adam Gandel. Marshall Investments provided the $8 million debt facility. 

UpCover offers the world fastest business insurance quoting experience powered by its proprietary instant quote flow across a range of business industry verticals. Despite a significant shift towards online-first insurance platforms abroad, over 95% of commercial insurance in Australia is still negotiated via offline brokers. This is in stark contrast to home and motor insurance, where well over 60% of the transactions are completed online.

Leveraging UpCover, companies can access market-leading business insurance products including public liability, professional  indemnity, directors liability insurance and dedicated specific insurance for scaling and technology businesses. Where needed, UpCover also provides businesses with one click financing for business insurance products offered on its platform. 

The business also offers white labelled (or embedded) insurance solutions and insurance APIs,enabling brands to offer B2B insurance utilising upcover’s market leading insurance platform, as well as its unique AI-assisted customer support layer. 

Skye Theodorou, co-founder of UpCover said: “We’ve defied the odds with UpCover. Not only has the business thrived during one of the hardest years Australia’s startup industry has seen, but we’re also competing against four of Australia’s largest companies who control 80% of our market. It’s no wonder we’re still the only startup in this sector of insurance.”

“It’s telling that one in three businesses that quote with us, end up taking insurance from us. Over $20 billion worth in business insurance is sold annually in Australia. Only 5% of it is traded digitally. Despite the majority of it being sold by brokers, it’s still by-and-large not relevant to the customer. Time and time again, businesses and business owners are sold insurance that simply doesn’t fit their needs, or even worse, doesn’t properly cover them.

“It’s one of the few instances where automation is absolutely doing a better job than their human counterparts. Once insurance is sold, brokers don’t always check in with businesses as they grow, to ensure their coverage continues to fit their needs. It’s something we’ve built into UpCover.”

Anish Sinha, co-founder of UpCover said: “We’ve always operated with a capital scarcity mindset, that has helped us thrive in what has been one of the startup industry’s toughest years to date.” 

“In less than three years, and with a fifth of the funding raised by our US and UK counterparts,  we’ve helped 1% of all businesses in Australia to find the right insurance. Overseas players in this sector have spent significantly more to acquire a similar market share. 

“With our $19 million Series A funding, we’re now armed with the firepower to dominate the market, quadruple our penetration, launch cutting-edge digital insurance verticals, and embed AI at the core of UpCover’s business insurance broking and underwriting technology.”

“The business insurance industry has seen a string of M&A and PE buyouts in the last couple of years, reducing the choice for Australian businesses. Staying independent, remaining nimble and cost conscious, and injecting new capital will enable UpCover to challenge the status quo of the analog incumbents and disrupt the commercial insurance industry in 2025 and beyond.”

Paul Saunders, Partner at RealVC, said: “The $20 billion Australian business insurance industry has remained stubbornly analogue, with the customer deeply unhappy with the experience and coverage. This has provided an enormous opportunity for a digital disruptor to change the paradigm. 

“RealVC is delighted to lead Upcover’s Series A round. The founding team of Skye, Anish, and Sajjad has the rare combination of deep domain knowledge, impressive execution, and technical skills. This position positions the company to dramatically improve the customer experience.

“RealVC is an active investor that invests in businesses that meet its 5 M criteria: strong Management, a large and growing Market, a profitable business Model, and a sustainable and competitive Moat. These four criteria need to coincide with the right Moment in time. With the advent of AI significantly increasing what is possible to deliver for our customers, Upcover exhibits all of these qualities.” 

James Edwards, CEO of BetterLabs said: “Upcover’s remarkable growth trajectory, despite the recent challenges in the Australian startup ecosystem, is a testament to the founding team’s resilience, focus and capability. We are very proud to have led their Seed round and continue to believe in their ability to further disrupt the business insurance market in Australia. 

This Series A round, led by RealVC and supported by BetterLabs, will provide the firepower for Upcover to  expand their innovative digital product offerings, continue on their remarkable growth trajectory and solidify their position as the leader in the Insurtech space'”.

Fady Abdel-Nour, Partner at Antler Elevate, said: “At Antler Elevate, we back exceptional founders who are leveraging technology to transform industries. Upcover is redefining the insurance experience for small businesses and independent workers, making it more accessible, affordable, and frictionless. Their strong execution, deep industry expertise, and bold vision align perfectly with our investment thesis. We’re excited to support Upcover as they scale and reshape the future of insurance.”

UpCover launched its platform in 2021, founded by Skye Theodorou, Anish Sinha and Sajjad Naveed. It was backed by Antler Australia’s $46 million first fund. 

This latest raise builds on UpCover’s earlier seed round, where it raised $2.7 million in equity funding, led by Betterlabs and Antler, and $2 million in debt. Upcover has raised a total of $23.7 million to date, $13.7 million of which is equity funding.

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Paddy Byrne, a seasoned executive with a combination of insurance and technology expertise, has held prominent roles such as Senior Non-Executive at SRG Group, Chairman of 6point6 Ltd and Executive Director UK of Xchanging Ltd. Michael Watson, founder of Canopius and former member of the Council of Lloyd’s, offers exceptional leadership experience and an extensive network within the insurance sector. Together, they bring multifaceted perspectives to Carbon’s dynamic board.

Aligned with Carbon’s strategic goals and the support of its investor Apiary Capital, Watson and Byrne’s expertise will enhance Carbon’s ability to deliver innovative solutions to the international coverholder market, powered by its groundbreaking Graphene platform.

Nick Tye, Founder and CEO of Carbon Underwriting, said: “Rupert’s leadership since taking the helm as Chairman in Carbon’s early stages, has been pivotal in accelerating our growth. His wisdom and steady hand helped shape us into a market leader in DUA business at Lloyd’s. On behalf of the entire team, I want to express my heartfelt thanks and best wishes for his next chapter.

As we look to the future, we are delighted to welcome Paddy and Michael to our Board. Their combined entrepreneurial spirit, deep underwriting expertise, and proven track records in navigating and scaling complex businesses make them the perfect addition to our team. At Carbon, we’ve created a unique culture where cutting-edge technology like Graphene meets the warmth and ingenuity of our people, and Michael and Paddy are perfectly placed to help us harness this blend for the next phase of our journey.”

Outgoing Carbon Non-Executive Chairman Rupert Atkin said: “Carbon is unique – a true innovator that thrives at the intersection of underwriting expertise and technology. What sets them apart is their collaborative spirit; the way they combine deep experence with forward-thinking solutions creates something far greater than the sum of its parts. It has been a privilege to provide strategic oversight and support during such a transformative period, and I am confident their culture will continue to drive them forward as a trailblazer in the delegated underwriting space.”

Carbon Non-Executive Chairman Paddy Byrne added: “What drew me to Carbon is its exceptional team and its commitment to combining technical underwriting prowess with a compelling technology proposition that anticipates and responds directly to market needs. Carbon has an unparalleled opportunity to redefine how delegated underwriting is delivered, and I am thrilled to bring my experience to the table to help drive this vision forward.”

Carbon Non-Executive Director Michael Watson commented: “Since its foundation, Carbon has enjoyed exceptional growth thanks to the team’s energy, entrepreneurial ethos, and the transformational capabilities of its technology platform Graphene. I look forward to joining the Board and contributing to Carbon’s continued success and profitable growth.”

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Addressing critical customer needs in a digital environment

Polly is CLARK’s insurance brand, specifically tailored for UK mums of all ages. Initially started in 2015 as a life insurance brand, Polly expanded its distribution portfolio to include a wide range of insurance products such as income protection, critical illness, and household cover to help more than 750,000 mums in the UK protect their families’ financial futures. Polly’s Life and Serious Illness Cover (SIC) products are underwritten and manufactured by the Swiss Re subsidiary, iptiQ.

With the introduction of the Digital Pathway for life insurance products, Polly now fills a major gap in the industry: accessibility and convenience for customers who prefer or require digital-first solutions when purchasing insurance products. With 23% of 18-34-year-olds never answering calls and over half assuming unexpected calls bring bad news (1), Polly’s solution empowers customers to manage their insurance needs entirely online, independently, and on their own terms.

Technology meets inclusivity

“This innovation is not only about efficiency—it’s about inclusivity,” says Joshua Sargent, CEO of CLARK UK. The Digital Pathway ensures that customers, whether too busy for a phone call, preferring an alternative to one-on-one phone interaction, or even facing accessibility challenges like hearing impairments can access customised insurance recommendations in a secure and user-friendly way.

The platform uses cutting-edge technology to analyse a customer’s unique life situation, existing insurance coverage, and personal preferences through an intuitive questionnaire. Based on this information, it identifies their needs and delivers real-time, tailored recommendations. While the process is fully automated, the CLARK UK expert team remains available for personal assistance, ensuring a human touch when needed.

A UK milestone for scaling insurtech

As a tech-driven initiative, the Digital Pathway embodies CLARK’s broader growth strategy in the UK and ambition of leading the market with innovative, customer-first insurance solutions. Having scaled from a team of 5 to 167 employees, CLARK UK is leveraging this technology to further expand its capabilities to help individuals protect what matters most in their lives. “This marks a significant step in redefining digital insurance distribution, ensuring that protection reaches those who need it most, in the way they prefer.” says Richard Kerton, Chief Distribution Officer of CLARK UK. The Launch of Polly’s Digital Pathway sets the stage for broader applications of this technology reflecting CLARK’s long-term commitment to transforming how customers engage with insurance. Later this year, CLARK plans to also roll out the Digital Pathway for its brand TOM, which is specifically focused on insurance for dads.

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