Sweden-based insurance provider Bima raised $38.4m yesterday in a series C round backed by existing stakeholders including telecommunications and media group Millicom and mobile network operator Digicel.
Investment firm Kinnevik, private equity provider LeapFrog Investments and angel investors Stephan Wilcke, Anders Olsson, Gustaf Agartson and Mathilda Ström also returned for the round.
Founded in 2010, Bima enables consumers in emerging markets to get life, health and accident insurance through their mobile devices. The company has partnered with a range of mobile networks in those countries, including Tigo, the African subsidiary of Millicom.
Bima is set to use the funding to expand into additional markets, and to scale and further develop its platform. Its offering is currently available in 14 countries, and Bima aims to add more than 750,000 new users to its base each month.
Millicom previously took part in Bima’s $22m series B round in April 2014 alongside Kinnevik and LeapFrog. Bima has not disclosed details about previous funding rounds, but Millicom, Kinnevik and LeapFrog had reportedly invested a combined $7.1m in the company by May 2013.
Gustaf Agartson, CEO of Bima, said: “We are very proud of our success so far, but believe that we are only at the beginning of the Bima journey. Mobile technology has the power to transform the lives of people living in emerging markets and we remain committed to finding ways to unlock that potential.”