- Qoala raises US$47M Series C despite reporting US$22.3M net loss in 2022.
- Investors bet on Indonesia’s low insurance penetration rate and market potential.
- Qoala plans expansion, AI deployment, and hiring with a five-year cash runway.
Investors bet on market potential
Qoala, an Indonesia-based insurtech firm, has raised a US$47 million series C round led by PayPal Ventures and MassMutual Ventures despite reporting a net loss of US$22.3 million in 2022.
The company has yet to turn a profit but remains confident in its future profitability due to strong unit economics and positive contribution margins.
Investors are betting on the potential for market expansion in Indonesia, given the country’s relatively low insurance penetration rate.
Time to ‘reap and plant’ again
The latest funding brings Qoala’s total capital raised to nearly US$140 million. The company plans to use the new funds to expand its market reach in Southeast Asia, grow new distribution channels and product lines, and deploy AI into its operations.
Despite higher expenses in 2022, Qoala claims to have cracked the right unit economics and achieved its highest-ever contribution margin in December 2023.
The company has a cash runway of more than five years and is hiring more people to ramp up production.
Competing in the insurtech space
Launched in December 2018, Qoala operates on two main business models: embedded partnerships and an insurance agency.
The company has facilitated over 215 million policies and generated US$280 million in gross written premiums (GWP) since 2020.
However, it faces competition from local players like Fuse and PasarPolis, which have generated higher GWP and sold more policies in recent years.
To read the original article: https://www.techinasia.com/why-paypal-vc-arm-betting-qoala-insurtech-firm
