HONG KONG SAR - Media OutReach - 30 August 2021 - OneDegree, one of Asia's fastest growing InsurTech companies, today announces that it has raised USD28 million in a Series B1 funding round, as it accelerates to be the next-generation InsurTech leader in the region.
The latest round brings the total funds raised by OneDegree to date to over USD70 million, demonstrating investors' strong reception to the growth delivered by the Group since its previous funding round. The new funds will be used for OneDegree's investment in new technology, product development and expansion across both Business to Consumer (B2C) and Business to Business (B2B) segments.
To complement its expansion in Asia, the Group plans to double its headcount to 300 over the next 12 months. At the same time, it is deepening its strategic partnerships in Asia Pacific and Europe, with the aim of becoming a global InsurTech business with presence in five continents within the next five years.
"OneDegree has been going from strength to strength. This latest funding round is a testament to our achievement and a vote of confidence from both our existing and new investors," said Alvin Kwock, Co-founder of OneDegree. "Our ambition is to grow OneDegree Hong Kong into a top three general insurance providers in Hong Kong by 2025 and bring our proven consumer products to key markets across Asia."
Alex Leung, Co-founder of OneDegree, said: "With our IXT technology solutions, OneDegree is already embarking on its plans to be a leading B2B technology player in the global insurance space. We see increasing demands for IXT, as more and more insurance ecosystem participants are partnering with OneDegree Global to leverage the power of our technology solutions to generate sales growth and deliver business results. The reach of OneDegree's technology is global, bringing positive impact to insurance businesses and end customers."
This Series B1 funding round includes participation from new investors, including the direct investment unit of Sun Hung Kai & Co. and AEF Greater Bay Area Fund, along with six existing investors.
Lincoln Yeh, Co-Head of Private Equity at Sun Hung Kai & Co. said: "The OneDegree team impressed us with the thoughtfulness behind their multi-line product roadmap, as well as their modular, enterprise SaaS offering. We believe that with the founding team's deep expertise across insurance and technology, OneDegree is well-positioned to become a leading virtual insurer for markets across Asia. We are excited to partner with OneDegree as part of Sun Hung Kai & Co's direct investments strategy."
"We have been tracking OneDegree since its Series A Round, when Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund (AEF) first invested. Since then, we have been impressed by how OneDegree is delivering on its business growth. As OneDegree further expands in Asia, it makes perfect sense for us to select OneDegree as one of the first investments for the AEF Greater Bay Area Fund", said Chibo Tang, managing partner of Gobi Partners, the general partner of the AEF Greater Bay Area Fund.
About OneDegree
OneDegree ("the Group") was established in 2016 to accelerate technoloigcal innovations in the insurance industry and to make insurance more accessible to everyone. The Group has operations in Hong Kong, Taipei, Shenzhen and Singapore.
Its subsidiary OneDegree Hong Kong received a virtual insurer licence from the Hong Kong Insurance Authority in April 2020. It has a multi-line digital insurance business that offers protection for pet, e-commerce, and home for individuals and businesses. The other subsidiary, OneDegree Global, is a provider of modern insurance technology solutions, which have been well-received in the industry and are adopted by leading insurers in Asia seeking to accelerate digital transformation.
OneDegree has raised over USD70 million to date, with BitRock Capital, Sun Hung Kai & Co., AEF Greater Bay Area Fund, Cyberport Macro Fund, and Cathay Venture among its investors.
Notes to Editors
OneDegree Business Update
B2B – highly scalable tech solutions for insurers and enterprise-grade cybersecurity solutions
- OneDegree Global's (ODG) technology solutions IXT and its modular solutions are already implemented by leading global insurers since the launch in Q3 2020. In addition, ODG has developed enterprise-grade Cymetrics cybersecurity solutions that are adopted by financial institutions, health tech and other enterprises in Asia.
- The ODG technology solutions have significantly accelerated enterprise customers' product innovations, enabling them to break-through existing system constraints, enhance operational agility and quicken new product time-to-market.
B2C – product innovation with strong market fit for consumers, demonstrated by strong customer engagement
- Within the first year of launch, OneDegree Hong Kong (ODHK) has become a multi-line insurer with a growing portfolio across pet, home and e-commerce and it has quickly achieved market leading position in pet and e-commerce insurance.
- ODHK recorded an average of 35% monthly sales growth and its strong product-market fit is demonstrated by over 90,000 paid customers to date (we believe this is the highest among the four virtual insurers in the market) and strong customer satisfaction and engagement, with over 90% of customers renewing their policies.
- For its new initiatives, ODHK will be launching digital asset insurance, a bundled insurance and technology offering for digital asset service providers, together with the Cymetrics cybersecurity solutions. ODHK also has plans to launch its health and wellness products in Q4 2021 and other general insurance products in 2022.
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