Hudson Structured co-leads $24m Series A for insurtech Branch

Hudson Structured Capital Management Ltd., undertaking its insurance and reinsurance investment business as HSCM Bermuda, has co-led a $24 million Series A investment round for home and auto insurtech firm Branch.

Branch is a technology-driven home and auto insurance company that aims to streamline the quote and bind process, by eliminating the sometimes lengthy traditional insurance application process to deliver instant, purchasable prices to consumers instead of estimates.

HSCM Bermuda co-led Branch’s Series A round alongside investment firm Greycroft, with participation in the round also from returning investors American Family Ventures and Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, as well as new investors SignalFire, reinsurance firm SCOR Global P&C, Elefund, Foundation Capital, and individuals from Stone Point Capital.

Branch brings seamless data integrations into the insurance purchase equation, enabling consumers to get actionable quotes with accurate prices in just seconds, to purchase bundled home and auto coverage.

Branch has launched in Arizona, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, and Texas in just the last twelve months

The insurtech intends to put the Series A funding to use in spearheading a strategic nationwide expansion plan through 2021.

Branch’s technology can be integrated simply into home-financing and car-buying websites, enabling those companies to offer seamless insurance offerings within their own customer journey.

Branch equips customers with insurance without a big drop-off in website conversion rates, by providing pricing upfront that the cover can actually be purchased at which helps to increase confidence and engagement to encourage purchase completion.

“Branch is on a mission to make home and car insurance less expensive for all, enabling more of us to be financially protected from life’s uncertainties,” explained Cofounder and CEO Steve Lekas. “This investment further equips Branch to bring instant, financially strong, and less expensive insurance to so many more.”

“We have followed the Branch story since 2018 and are thrilled to have the opportunity to co-lead the round,” Vikas Singhal, Partner & CIO of HSCM Bermuda’s insurtech investments said. “Branch has innovated across many critical areas of the insurance value chain – distribution, technology, risk management, and capital.”

“Branch’s unique instant-bind capability, allowing people to buy bundled home and auto insurance after only giving their name and address, has never been possible before,” added Ian Sigalow, Cofounder & Partner of Greycroft. “Branch also brings community back to insurance in a way that reduces cost and increases the number of people who can get coverage, which is beneficial to all.”

Hudson Structured, which was established by ex-Goldman Sachs structured finance head Michael Millette, invests in insurtech as one of a range of ways it sources insurance and reinsurance-linked returns for its investors, from across the full range of market access points.

Hudson Structured targets certain insurtech investments as a way to deliver on insurance market distribution innovation-linked returns for investors in its funds.