US-based online insurance portal Next Insurance has secured $83m in a series B round featuring reinsurance provider Munich Re, financial services firm Nationwide and payment services firm American Express.
Venture capital firm Redpoint Ventures led the round, which included Ribbit Capital, TLV Partners, SGVC and Zeev Ventures, while American Express participated through its corporate venturing unit, American Express Ventures.
Next runs an online platform that specialises in niche insurance products, targeting small businesses in particular. Its partners include Munich Re, with which it formed a collaboration in late 2016 that covers commercial photographers.
The series B cash will enable Next to increase the size of its engineering, online marketing and insurance product teams as it looks to expand in the US and Israel. It closed the round less than two months after securing regulatory approval to be a licensed insurance carrier.
Guy Goldstein, Next’s founder and CEO, said: “We are excited about what this funding will enable all of us at Next Insurance to do: provide more small businesses across all 50 states with the simple, affordable, tailored insurance they need in order for their businesses to thrive.
“We aim to be the company that supports small businesses as they move forward, and this new funding will enable us to grow and expand our efforts to do so.”
The company had previously raised $35m in a series A round that closed in June 2017 after a $6m investment by American Express Ventures.
Munich Re unit Munich Re/HSB Ventures had led the $29m first tranche the month before, participating alongside insurers Markel and Nationwide Mutual.
Zeev Ventures had already led the company’s $13m seed round in early 2016, investing together with TLV Partners and Ribbit Capital.