Kenyan Insurtech startup Lami raises $1.8m

Zainab Iwayemi

In recent time, insurtech business has gained ground all over the world. A new report by Willis Tower Watson, a global advisory, broking and solutions company revealed that global investment in the insurtech sector rebounded from its COVID-19-related slowdown a year ago to hit a new quarterly high of $2.55 billion in the first quarter of 2021.

Lami, a Kenyan insurtech company whose strategy is hinged on democratizing the insurance products and services for low-income Kenyans recently joined this train as it raised a $1.8 million in seed funding round led by Accion Venture Lab.

Speaking on the workings of Lami, Jihan Abass, founder of Lami outlined how the platform is helping to distribute insurance amongst Kenyans. “Similar to a payment API/gateway, we process insurance KYC, pricing of products, underwriting of products and claims processing in real-time.

“Let me give you an example, Jumia wanted to launch an insurance marketplace but they didn’t want to go through the hassle of integrating with every single insurance company and they didn’t want to manage the process of issuing policies. Using our API because we have 20 insurance companies on our platform, they were able to launch this marketplace with a large number of products.”

Michael Schlein, President and CEO, Accion Venture Lab noted that the paltry percentage of insurance reach in Africaafrica necessitated investment in Lami. According to him, “Ninety-seven percent of Africans lack access to insurance – a financial safety net that can help them build resilience against economic shocks. Lami helps address this need for consumers across Africa through its innovative approach that leverages technology and partnerships to help any business develop and sell insurance.”

The digital insurance platform founded in 2018 enables partner businesses from banks, tech companies, and other entities offer digital insurance products to users via its API easily and seamlessly.

The insurtech firm also allows for business partnerships for proper management of insurance needs. Users can get a quotation for products such as motor, medical, or other tailored insurance products in seconds through its API while partners get to customize the benefits and adjust the premium to suit their needs. In addition, claims are paid in record time and policy documents are gotten instantly.