Coon brothers insurance start-up gets big funding boost

The sons of Sovereign founder Chris Coon have completed a $2 million financing round for their insurance start-up.

Friday, July 26th 2019, 12:58PM

Cove has been running since September last year, founded by Brett Wilson and brothers Andy and Rob Coon, sons of Chris Coon. It uses a conversational chatbot interface with customers.

At the moment, it offers car and phone insurance but plans to expand further.

Greenlight Re Innovations (GRI) has joined its shareholders, bringing total funding to-date to $5 million.

"We've been working for nearly two years now to create an insurance experience New Zealanders will love, at a competitive price, and managed fully online,” Andy Coon said.

“Kiwis are used to slick online experiences with their banking these days, and the bar in terms of digital experience has been raised significantly by the likes of Netflix, Spotify and Uber, but for some reason insurance has been left behind in adopting user-friendly technology.

“This investment round will allow us to further develop our existing product to sufficiently leapfrog the traditional insurance companies in New Zealand, and to offer what we believe to be a best-in-class experience for our customers."

In a statement, a representative said there were ambitious plans to scale up the business.

"It’s important for New Zealanders to have choice in the insurance category, outside of the large incumbents. We have great products with solid backing and the right partnerships. We will keep introducing products and features that delight our customers. We have proven market acceptance of Cove and with the new capital the next step is starting to scale up our marketing operations to let more kiwis know about us and grow out our market share."

GRI is part of Greenlight Capital Re Ltd, a specialist property and casualty reinsurance company headquartered in the Cayman Islands and supports insurance technology innovators through investment, risk capacity, and strategic advice.

Its chief executive Simon Burton said: “We believe Cove’s technology-driven business model has the potential to transform New Zealand’s insurance market. Consumers are demanding a fully online experience, and Cove has delivered it for motor and mobile phone insurance. We look forward to supporting Cove as it develops new product offerings.”

Tags: Cove Insurance insurance Sovereign