German insurance giant Allianz Group has increased the size of its digital investment unit Allianz X, making it one of the largest corporate venture funds in Europe.
Image: Allianz X increases fund size to €1bn. Photo: courtesy of Allianz.
Allianz X has received additional investment from Allianz SE, increasing its fund size to €1bn.
Allianz X was created with an objective to invest in digital growth companies across the world, that are part of Allianz’s ecosystems related to insurance, that include mobility, connected property, connected health, wealth management and retirement, and data intelligence and cybersecurity.
Allianz said that the increased investment in the digital investment unit has been driven by its investment track record, successful collaborations with startups and also its contribution towards the overall digital transformation strategy of the insurance group.
The German company said that the new capital is planned to be utilized for making additional direct investments in digital companies across the world that are strategically relevant to it.
Allianz X CEO Nazim Cetin said: “Since shifting our strategy, we have built a great portfolio in which many companies have already developed successful partnerships with Allianz’s business units.
“We are very excited about raising our investment budget to 1 billion euros and will use the funds entrusted to us to both strengthen our portfolio and build strong, global platforms that create new businesses for Allianz.”
As of now, the digital investment unit has made over 15 direct investments in digital businesses related to insurance.
One of the notable investments made by it includes the $96.6m it invested in December 2017 in BIMA, a UK-based digital microinsurer, which leverages mobile technology to serve low-income customers across African, Asian and Latin American countries.
BIMA’s technology is said to provide affordable insurance and health products to emerging markets customers who require them but cannot access them through conventional channels.
About a year ago, Allianz X invested $30m in US-based working capital marketplace C2FO and followed it with a $35m investment in Southeast Asian mobile platform Go-Jek in April 2018.
Recently, the Allianz digital fund participated in the Series D funding round of German direct bank N26 after co-leading the company’s $160m Series C round in 2018.
Allianz chief business transformation officer Iván de la Sota said: “We are very pleased with the progress Allianz X has made thus far and are committed to further invest and develop the next generation of digital growth companies related to Allianz’s core business.
“Our digitalization approach is multifaceted; Allianz X is a valuable addition – not only in meeting the changing expectations of our customers.”