Online insurer OneDegree raises US$27 million, to expand digital assets insurance portfolio
- Gobi Partner, Sun Hung Kai and Bitrock are among investors who funded the latest round of investments in OneDegree
- The online insurer has now conducted five funding rounds since its establishment in 2016, taking its total fundraising to over US$97 million
OneDegree, one of Hong Kong’s first virtual insurers, has raised US$27 million in its latest fundraising campaign to finance expansion of its digital assets insurance portfolio, the company said on Thursday.
Gobi Partners, Sun Hung Kai and Bitrock, which have already invested in the online insurer, are joined by new investors in financing this round of fundraising. This is the fifth fundraising effort since the company’s establishment in 2016, and follows the US$28 million financing completed in 2021, bringing the aggregate funds raised to more than US$97 million.
The start-up is among four pure online insurers licensed as part of a push by the Hong Kong Insurance Authority to promote the use of more technology in the insurance sector to reduce costs and enhance services.
Online insurance, as opposed to conventional forms of insurance, charges lower premiums than offline insurance since the cover is bought directly from the insurer and the transaction is conducted via the internet rather than through an insurance agency branch. The licence prohibits the company from hiring agents and sales can only be conducted using the internet or via apps.
“It is a real seal of approval to receive such strong backing from the market during this challenging fundraising environment,” said Alvin Kwock Yin-lun, OneDegree’s co-founder and a former JPMorgan banker.
Kwock said the latest fundraising follows strong growth in the company’s revenues via sales of coverage for pets, home, fire, medical expense and digital assets. He expects the firm to turn profitable next year.