US-based insurance provider Alfac increased the size of its corporate venturing vehicle, Aflac Ventures Fund, from $100m to $250m yesterday.
The firm also extended the investment timeframe of the unit from three years to three to four in the process.
The fund was formed in March 2017 as a subsidiary of a larger unit called Aflac Corporate Ventures and has so far made eight investments across the US and Japan, it said, paying between $1m and $6m for equity stakes sized between 3% and 14%.
Aflac has so far only disclosed participation in a $5m series A round for insurance broker tool provider Wellthie in April 2017, and a $75m investment in middle-market finance provider NXT Capital in January 2018.
Nadeem Khan, president of Aflac Corporate Ventures, said: “Our focus continues to be on growth-stage, innovative and scalable companies. As we increase the fund size, we are diversifying into later-stage deals and fund-of-fund opportunities.
“This supports our overall strategy to invest in companies with missions relevant to Aflac’s core business and restates our commitment in this space. This also provides greater market reach and drives deal flow by building partnerships with the startup ecosystem and other corporate and strategic investment groups.”