The SMB insurance market in Europe has long suffered from a dearth of innovation. The insurance offering to these companies is hindered by a lack of user-centricity as traditional brokers and managing general agents (MGAs) adhere to a one-size-fits-all approach, relying on outdated product and distribution strategies. SMBs often go ignored by providers as a result.
Berlin-based insurtech SureIn’s platform has an end-to-end insurance infrastructure designed around the needs of SMBs. Now, the startup has secured €4 million in seed funding provide end-to-end insurance solutions to SMBs.
The investment round was led by Pact VC, alongside participation from German VC fund xDeck (which invested in Kertos) and renowned business angels such as Warrick Shanly, solo GP and founder of Koro Capital; Robin Haak, solo GP and founder of Robin Capital; and multiple FinTech and InsurTech angels, like the exited founder of Gabi insurance Vincenz Klemm. Previous investors of SureIn also include Arc, Sequoia Capital’s pre-seed and seed stage catalyst and Atlantic Labs.
Plans to develop its platform
The fresh funds will be used to develop the SureIn platform further, improve product automation across the lifecycle and expand the range of insurance products to healthcare and pension in existing and new verticals such as professional services and startups. Also, SureIn will use the funding primarily to expand its team in technical areas to build out the platform and increase operational efficiency.
Daniel Dierkes, CEO and Co-founder of SureIn said, “Our experience in the market shows no SMB entrepreneur really knows their risks and which insurance they need. When they come to us, we can see their former contracts all had gaps in their protection. Clearly, there is something wrong in this market. With this in mind, our overarching mission is to dispel the opaque nature plaguing the industry, empowering founders with insights into their risks and the insurance products best suited to shield against them – all the while securing top-tier products at competitive prices.”
Monik Pham, Founding Partner at Pact VC, commented, “SMBs are the backbone of Europe as they make up 99 per cent of all businesses, accounting for more than half of the GDP across the market. Yet they are severely ignored by insurers. SureIn’s solution uniquely places them to change the insurance market by providing fair access to products, smoothing out market inefficiencies and empowering businesses to take control of the risks posed to their livelihoods. We are proud to be backing this incredible team who have spent most of their professional lives building tools and products for SMBs in insurance and scale-ups that have reached IPO.”
George Robson, Partner at Sequoia, said, “We partnered with SureIn early on because we strongly believe in the team’s mission. As businesses’ needs change, so does their risk situation, and so should their insurance coverage. SureIn is constantly monitoring these changes to make sure clients’ coverages are up-to-date. We believe this is a game changer for the industry, and many entrepreneurs will benefit from this at such a crucial point in their businesses’ journeys.”
Insurance for European SMBs made seamless
SureIn was founded by Daniel Dierkes, David Schara and Maximilian Geißinger in 2022 in Berlin. SureIn is changing the scenario by bridging the insurance gap for SMBs, starting in Germany. It lets SMBs to build their own systems, subscribe to third-party tools, or deal with conventional brokers to obtain or update coverage.
Currently, SureIn specialises in the hospitality, retail, beauty and wellness, services, and craft and construction businesses. By adopting a vertical-led distribution and expansion strategy, SureIn dives deep into the risk and service requirements of each segment it serves, ensuring tailored and up-to-date risk protection.
The company is one of the few insurtech businesses to have an automated risk monitoring system keeping policies up-to-date, ensuring optimal risk protection at all times.
Since its debut, SureIn has expanded into multiple industries, while the platform has quickly generated over €1 million in gross written premiums. The company has supported a range of businesses of different sizes and is close to achieving its 1,000th SMB client.
