As there aren’t many resources dedicated to cybersecurity, small and medium-sized companies are often vulnerable to cyber threats. Addressing this challenge, the first French cyber-insurtech company Stoïk has developed a product combining cyber insurance coverage with internal and external risk monitoring tools to protect its policyholders, as well as an in-house security incident response team. It meets the needs of insurance brokers who want to insure their most vulnerable clients.
European expansion plans
In a recent development, Stoïk has landed €10 million led by Munich Re Ventures alongside participation from Opera Tech Ventures, and previous investors Andreessen Horowitz (which recently backed ElevenLabs and Hippocratic AI) and Alven.
Stoïk now aims to expand to several European countries, beginning with Germany. With an estimated 2.5 million small and medium-sized companies, Germany is the natural first choice for the company’s first European deployment outside of France.
Stoïk plans to use this capital to open a new office in Köln, Germany, and to start assembling an exceptional local team. The head of the German business has been entrusted to Franziska Geier. As the former European Head of Strategy of the German insurance company, Markel, Franziska Geier will contribute her ten years of experience in the German market and her keen sense of entrepreneurship to the development of Stoïk.
Franziska Geier, Country Manager Germany, Stoïk, said, “I’m thrilled to embark on the Stoïk journey to develop its innovative model in Germany. Our ambition is to further democratize cyber-insurance by evangelising the German brokers in search of solutions adapted to the small and mid-sized business market.”
Jules Veyrat, CEO and co-founder, Stoïk, added, “Similar to their French counterparts, German insurance brokers need to protect their small and mid-sized business customers, but can struggle to find offerings that are both adapted to their needs and easy to underwrite. We are convinced that our model can be exported rapidly, provided we localise it to reflect the specificities of the German market, and this fundraising will empower us to do so. Faced with an increasing cyber risk, the entire European economic ecosystem needs to be strengthened.”
Ben Bergsma, Principal at Munich Re Ventures, noted, “We are very pleased to invest in Stoïk. We have been closely following the emergence of major players in cyber insurance in the United States and feel confident that Stoïk is poised for similar success in Europe.”
Seema Amble, Partner, a16z, added, “In a very short time, Stoïk has seen remarkable growth with insurance brokers and distributors. We remain impressed by their innovative vision, ability to execute, and by the company’s spectacular growth. We are proud to be on this adventure, and we believe Stoïk is in the best position to capture the European market.”
Helps insure and protect against cybersecurity
Founded in 2021 by Jules Veyrat, Alexandre Andreini, Nicolas Sayer and Philippe Mangematin, Stoïk empowers brokers by providing their clients with insurance policy and protection against cyber risks. Its mission is to provide them with the means to insure and protect their customers against cyber risk.
Its unique insurance product in the market offers a simplified underwriting process through automated tests that replace traditional questionnaires, continuous prevention with integrated cybersecurity tools, and a prompt and efficient incident response through an in-house team of crisis management experts.
Currently, the company has over 1,500 partner brokers that distribute its insurance product via its online platform. This approach quickly proved successful in the French market.
