Kenya’s Lami Technologies secures $1.8mn seed funding

Kenyan insurance firm LAMI Technologies has successfully raised $1.8 million in seed funding in an effort to accelerate the digital insurance footprint of the company. The CEO and founder, Jihan Abbas, emphasized the importance of democratizing access to insurance products during a recent interview with CNBC Africa. Abbas highlighted the low insurance penetration levels across Africa and other developing countries, attributing the issue to the lack of easily distributable products in the market. With LAMI's platform, they aim to make scaling and distributing insurance products more accessible, significantly reducing the cost per policy for insurance companies and distribution partners. This enables the possibility of selling thousands, even hundreds of thousands of policies at once, revolutionizing the industry in terms of ease of distribution. One key aspect that sets LAMI apart is their product agnostic approach, offering a wide range of insurance products from health and life insurance to vehicle and education insurance. The platform's versatility has attracted both investors and potential consumers, positioning LAMI as a significant player in the B2B insurance infrastructure sector. Despite being a relatively young company, founded in 2018 and officially launching its first product in January 2020, LAMI has already displayed robust growth and learning. Looking to the future, Abbas is confident in the platform's capability to compete with larger players in the industry, emphasizing the vast untapped potential of the insurance market across Africa. The key to convincing consumers to sign up for LAMI lies in building trust through seamless onboarding processes and efficient claims management. By simplifying policy documents and ensuring quick claim settlements, LAMI aims to bridge the trust gap between customers and insurance companies. Collaborating with trusted partners in various industries further reinforces this trust-building strategy, leveraging on existing relationships to make insurance products more accessible. With the recent $1.8 million seed funding, LAMI plans to expand its reach into new markets, such as West Africa, while maintaining a minority stake in the business to retain control and leverage investor expertise. As a woman-led and woman-run business, LAMI's success in securing significant capital represents a milestone not only for the company but for female entrepreneurs across Africa. Abbas acknowledges the challenges faced by female founders in the business world but remains determined to drive positive change and inspire other young women to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams. While an IPO may be on the horizon for LAMI, Abbas remains focused on the current growth trajectory and the mission to make insurance products more inclusive and easily accessible to all.