As a long shadow hangs over the global economy, the power of human ingenuity shines brightly. Two forces hang in the balance, the impact of exponential growth and our ability to use technology to solve problems.

Reflections of last week show us what we can do when we work together as a community against a shared challenge. Just one week ago, the number of cases was under 1,000 in the U.S. By the time this is sent, that number will be more than 5,000. As an industry, we have responded quickly with technology:

– Every major carrier shifted its workforce to WFH, representing over 1 million workers

– NY DFS has changed policy to permit sales of Cancel For Any Reason policies

– We continued digitally issuing policies, forecasting risk, and processing claims

At InsurTech NY, we believe in the power of the community. As we faced adversity last week, we knew technology was waiting in the wings to address our challenges and keep us together. Last Thursday, we were set to host an in-person conference with 50+ speakers and over 300 attendees.

Like risk managers, we weighed our options and decided we must switch to our 100% virtual plan. At that moment, we gave birth to the largest completely virtual InsurTech Conference. Thanks to the support of our community, we now have 450 people registered for our Spring InsurTech conference. All speakers, startups, and judges will participate 100% virtually in the same agenda and the same sessions. We will also host virtual 1-on-1 meetings using the Grip app, which will allow attendees to meet in virtual meeting rooms.

Now is your chance to escape the virus. Join us virtually for the InsurTech NY Spring Conference.

Register for the InsurTech NY Annual Conference

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Spotlight: InsurTechNY Competition Finalists

Finalists of our InsurTech competition will present at the InsurTech NY Annual Conference on March 19th. Finalists presenting include:

Early-stage: JAUNTIN, Sigo Insurance, Micruity, Atidot, Agilius, WOOP!, Protosure, AdaptReady, SAIVE, and Kiwi Insure

Growth-stage: Zelros, WeatherCheck, Planckdata, DeadHappy, Pharm3r, Matterport Insurance, INSHUR, Wenalyze, EasySend, and Quick Insured

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Upcoming NY Area Events

Spring 2020 Conference: Transforming the Buying Experience

Mar 19 | 8:00 AM – 6:30 PM | 100% Virtual

– Featuring 40+ speakers, 7 panels, 6 TED-style talks

– Pitch & demo competition featuring top 20 InsurTech startups

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InsurTech NY Sponsors

Thank you to our sponsors for making the March 19 conference possible: Eversheds Sutherland, clariondoor, EY, Two Sigma IQ, Locke Lord, e2value, Vpay, Assurity, BOBTRAK, UK Department for International Trade and Spencer Foundation.

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InsurTech New York Area Deals and Opportunities

A curated mix of Mar insurance financings, exits, partnerships, and opportunities in the New York area.

Instanda ($19.5M Raised, Assembly Capital Partners): Multi-line. No-code customer and policy management platform.

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Do you need help with Virtual Events?

In the last week, we developed a number of processes and systems that could be helpful to carriers, brokers, and event organizers to move to virtual. Happy to help you make the transition. Feel free to contact us at contact@insurtechny.com.

Best,

David, Tony, and Brett

InsurTech NY Team

The insurance industry faces a paradox. It’s an industry made up of 60% women (Property Casualty 360) but only 19% of board seats are held by women.

International Women’s Day (Mar 8) gives us an opportunity to redefine the fabric of our industry. We would like to thank and recognize the women participating as moderators, speakers, judges, and startup finalists in our March 19 Spring Conference for leading the way to a better insurance community. 

You will be able to meet these inspirational women at our Annual Spring Conference on March 19th in New York City. 

If you have not already registered, there are still spots available. 

Register for the InsurTech NY Annual Conference

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Spotlight: InsurTechNY Competition Finalists

Over 200 startups applied to compete in a two-track competition, pitting early and growth-stage companies against each other, for over $300,000 in prizes. Contestants are vying to be the most investable and the best carrier and broker partners respectively. 24 judges across the value chain including NY Life Ventures, CT Innovation, Anthemis, Guardian Life Ventures, Plug and Play, Greenlight Re, and IA Capital voted on the finalists.

The finalists represent an assortment of ventures across the globe:

Early-stage: JAUNTIN, Sigo Insurance, Micruity, Atidot, Agilius, WOOP!, Protosure, AdaptReady, SAIVE, and Kiwi Insure

Growth-stage: Zelros, WeatherCheck, Planckdata, DeadHappy, Pharm3r, Matterport Insurance, INSHUR, Wenalyze, EasySend, and Quick Insured

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Upcoming NY Area Events

Spring 2020 Conference: Transforming the Buying Experience

Mar 19 | 8:00 AM – 6:30 PM | NYC

– Featuring 40+ speakers, 7 panels, 6 TED-style talks

– Pitch & demo competition featuring top 20 InsurTech startups

Transforming Transatlantic Insurance: Pre-Conference Seminar

Mar 18 | 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM | 50 United Nations Plaza (Midtown)

– Speakers from: UK Treasury, Boost Insurance, Lloyds, and Beazley

– Audience limited to 75 seniors execs and founders in the US and UK markets

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Health and Safety Update

We are holding all events as planned. We are taking several precautions to protect our guests from Covid-19 including moving to a larger venue (Capitale) for more space between attendees, providing hand-sanitizer at the event, and boxed lunches. We will also have a livestream and networking app available. 

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InsurTech NY Sponsors

Thank you to our sponsors for making the March 19 conference possible: Eversheds Sutherland, clariondoor, EY, Two Sigma IQ, Guidewire, Locke Lord, e2value, McCarter & English, Rippling, AKUR8, Vpay, Trinet, Brex, Assurity, and Spencer Fund

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InsurTech New York Area Deals and Opportunities

A curated mix of Feb and Early Mar insurance financings, exits, partnerships, and opportunities in the New York area.

Ribbon Health ($10.25M Raised, a16z): Health lines. A platform that uses an API to integrate data on doctors, payers, and costs for an easier workflow. 

Unqork ($51M, Blackrock): Multi-line. A no-code platform for enterprise insurance and financial services.

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Looking for Job Postings / HR Partners

We are planning on launching a job board in partnership with the Spencer Foundation. If you would like your job postings in front of our newsletter subscribers and the pre-screened Spencer Foundation grant recipients please contact us at contact@insurtechny.com.

Over 200 startups applied to compete in a two-track competition, pitting early and growth-stage companies against each other, for over $300,000 in prizes. Contestants are vying to be the most investable and the best carrier and broker partners respectively.

The selection process employed 24 judges from across the insurance value chain representing companies including NY Life Ventures, CT Innovation, Anthemis, Guardian Life Ventures, Plug and Play, Greenlight Re, and IA Capital.

“Our team was impressed by the startups in the competition this year,” said Adam Blumencranz, Vice President at NFP Ventures. “They rival the top startups we find in our scouting process.”

“Insurtech is one of the most robust and diverse areas of investment in today’s business climate, and this competition is a great way to meet exciting companies, make a difference in their success, and help advance the industry,” said David Gritz, Co-founder of InsurTech NY.

The finalists represent an assortment of ventures across the globe spanning technologies from artificial intelligence to cloud, big data, and no-code in life, health, and property/casualty industries:

Early-stage: JAUNTIN, Sigo Insurance, Micruity, Atidot, Agilius, WOOP!, Protosure, AdaptReady, SAIVE, and Kiwi Insure

Growth-stage: Zelros, WeatherCheck, Planckdata, DeadHappy, Pharm3r, Matterport Insurance, INSHUR, Wenalyze, EasySend, and Quick Insured

The finalists will present on March 19th at the InsurTech NY Spring 2020 Conference (insurtechny-mar19.eventbrite.com). Judges will select the winners for the early-stage and the growth-stage tracks.

About InsurTechNY

InsurTech NY supports the insurance innovation community in the New York metro area. Founded in 2019, InsurTech NY brings together carriers, brokers, investors, and InsurTech startups via bi-monthly programs. InsurTech NY’s mission is to drive talent to insurance, make regulation innovation-friendly, attract InsurTechs to the New York metro area, and improve access to investment. Learn more at www.insurtechny.com or follow us on LinkedIn (linkedin.com/company/insurtechny).

Contact: David Gritz
235387@email4pr.com 
215-650-9400

March 19 represents an important day in U.S. history. On March 19, 1918, the U.S. established time zones (NPR). This agreement represented a step forward in technology and human coordination impacting trains, shipping, and business operations for the better.

As the insurance industry faces a new set of challenges including changing demographics, growing cyber and climate risks, and transforming digital ecosystems, working together is now essential. Answers to burning challenges can no longer be found within your four walls and the answers demand collaboration across the value chain.

To help you face the future ahead, we are bringing together carriers, brokers, InsurTechs, and investors to New York City on March 19th. Here are some highlights:

– Unicorns abound: hear from the author of The Making of Lemonade, Ty Sagalow and the head of marketing at Hippo, Andrea Collins

– Innovation + Creditworthiness = New Rating: listen to a Ted Style talk from Maura McGuigan, director of credit rating criteria, on the way innovation is impacting rating

– The top 10%: watch the top 10 percent InsurTech startups pitch and demo their new platforms and technologies

– Masters of intrapreneurial insurance: find out how Iptiq by SwissRe, Traverse by Travelers, and Spire from Nationwide came into existence

– Hot topics addressed: learn about selling insurance to millennials, the race to 10 mins to quote & bind, new business models in the gig economy, emerging technologies, and updating your core system
Take action and be part of the new standard of insurance collaboration.

Register for the InsurTech NY Annual Conference.

Don’t wait, as price goes up by 40% next week on March 2nd.

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Spotlight from NY Dept of Financial Services (Project Whitehall)

Are you an InsurTech founder/leader looking for answers to regulatory questions in the NY state? If so, look no further. NY DFS is launching a new pilot program that will allow InsurTech founders to seek guidance on NY state regulatory questions. NY DFS is mainly looking to support InsurTechs focused on consumer and small business markets, particularly those left out or underserved by traditional options. Learn more at DFS Project Whitehall

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Spencer Foundation Day

The Board of Directors of the Spencer Educational Foundation has pronounced Feb 24th as Spencer Day. The purpose of Spencer Day is to showcase Spencer scholarship recipients, the companies who hire them, and the myriad ways that Spencer supports industry education. Learn more at Spencer Day.

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Upcoming NY Area Events

Spring 2020 Conference: Transforming the Buying Experience (Prices go up 3/2)
Mar 19 | 8:00 AM – 6:30 PM | NYC
– Featuring 40+ speakers, 7 panels, 6 TED-style talks
– Pitch & demo competition featuring top 20 InsurTech startups

Transforming Transatlantic Insurance: Pre-Conference Seminar
Mar 18 | 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM | 50 United Nations Plaza (Midtown)
– Speakers from: UK Treasury, Boost Insurance, Lloyds, and Beazley
– Audience limited to 75 seniors execs and founders in the US and UK markets

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InsurTech NY Sponsors

Thank you to our sponsors for making this conference possible: Eversheds Sutherland, clariondoor, EY, Two Sigma IQ, Guidewire, Locke Lord, e2value, McCarter & English, Rippling, AKUR8, Vlocity, Vpay

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InsurTech New York Area Deals and Opportunities

A curated mix of Feb insurance financings, exits, partnerships, and opportunities in the New York area.

Inshur (News): Inshur partnered with Drivers Benefits to provide rideshare drivers with eye exams, access to telemedicine, and safety and wellness classes

Blackboard Insurance (News): Blackboard Insurance announced the approval of its commercial insurance in Virginia, bringing it to a total of 47 states

Timezone Story from Above (NPR Planet Money Podcast): www.npr.org/2019/06/07/730727038/episode-918-the-day-of-two-noons

Being an InsurTech is a lonely proposition. In the FinTech world, you are considered an outsider. In the legacy insurance world, you are out on the bleeding edge of new ideas. Among other InsurTechs you are often doing something very different. For example, a P&C claims platform has little in common with digital MGA in life.

Faced with the challenge of bringing the community together, we decided late last year to create a competition. Whether it is the Superbowl, the Olympics, or pickup basketball in the park, competition brings people together. From Jan 7 to Feb 7, we accepted applications for a two-track InsurTech competition and were amazed by the results. Here are some quick highlights:

– 209 Applicants
– 30 Countries Represented (Top Int’l: 9 Canada, 8 UK, 7 Israel, 5 India)
– 47 New York Applicants
– Popular Focus Areas: Digital MGA, Claims Automation, AI, & Tools for Brokers

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Watch the Finalists

Currently, judges are reviewing the applications to select the top 10 early-stage and top 10 growth-stage companies. These 20 companies will present at our Spring Conference on March 19th and will be judged by investors from 24 investment firms and CVCs. Judges will select the top three in each track at the conference.

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Learn more about UK InsurTechs

InsurTechs will be selected from across the pond to participate in our invite-only event with the UK Department for International Trade on Mar 18th. Info to request an invite below.
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Upcoming NY Area Events

Spring 2020 Conference: Transforming the Buying Experience (Save 15% for Newsletter subscribers)
Mar 19 | 8:00 AM – 6:30 PM | NYC
– Featuring 40+ speakers, 7 panels, 6 TED-style talks
– Pitch & demo competition featuring top 20 InsurTech startups

Transforming Transatlantic Insurance: Pre-Conference Seminar (Request an Invite)
Mar 18 | 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM | 50 United Nations Plaza (Midtown)
– Speakers from: Lloyds, Beazley, UK Treasury, Boost Insurance, and more…
– Audience limited to 75 seniors execs and founders in the US and UK markets

InsurTech Webinar: Digitizing Property Risk Management (Free)
Feb 18 | 2:00 PM – 2:30 PM | Online
– Speakers from Private Equity Cos. representing $1B+ in property risk
– Learn how InsurTechs are improving commercial real estate risk

InsurTech Hartford Pitch Night V
Feb 25 | 5:30 PM – 9:00 PM | 20 Church St, Hartford, CT
– Startup showcase of Hartford area InsurTechs

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Sponsors

Eversheds Sutherland, Clariondoor, EY, Two Sigma IQ, Guidewire, Locke Lord, e2Value, McCarter & English, and Rippling

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InsurTech New York Area Deals and Opportunities

A curated mix of Jan and early Feb insurance financings, exits, partnerships, and opportunities in the New York area.

Policy Genius ($100M Raised, KKR): Personal lines. Online insurance marketplace.

Boost Insurance ($14M, Coatue & Greycroft): Multi-line. Infrastructure-as-a-service platform designed for the insurance industry.

Covera health ($23.5M Raised, Insight Partners): Health lines. Platform to reduce misdiagnoses for employers and payers.

WTW InsurTech Briefing: 2019 InsurTech investment reaches an all-time high totaling $6.37 billion.

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Looking for Graphic Design Volunteer

We are looking for a volunteer than can help us with graphic design and create infographics
If you are interested, please contact us at contact@insurtechny.com.

InsurTechNY, the largest InsurTech community in the New York metro area, spanning carriers, brokers, startups, and investors, has opened the application window for the 2020 InsurTech Startup Competition (www.insurtechny.com/competition).

The competition has two tracks and will award $300,000 in prizes to the six winning teams. Startups in the early-stage track will compete for the title of the most investable startup. The growth-stage teams will compete to demonstrate the highest year over year growth potential. Top teams will get to pitch their business or demo their platform at the InsurTechNY Spring Conference on Mar 19, 2020, where judges will select the winners.

“We’re looking worldwide for the top startups that support the insurance industry to showcase their platforms,” said David Gritz, co-founder of InsurTechNY. “Our team has curated the most active investors and insurance innovation leaders to judge the competition.”

Judges for the competition will be evaluating startups for potential investment or pilot opportunities. They comprise investment organizations including New York Angels, Anthemis, and CT Innovations. The pool of judges represents the entire insurance value chain from broker to reinsurance including NFP Ventures, Transamerica, and GreenlightRe.

The deadline for submissions is February 7, 2020. Finalists to present in-person will be announced in early March 2020.

Media Contact:
David Gritz
215-650-9400
231887@email4pr.com

About InsurTechNY
InsurTechNY supports the insurance innovation community in the New York metro area. Founded in 2019, InsurTechNY brings together carriers, brokers, investors, and InsurTech startups via bi-monthly programs. InsurTechNY’s mission is to drive talent to insurance, make regulation innovation-friendly, attract InsurTechs to the New York metro area, and improve access to investment. Learn more at www.insurtechny.com or follow us on LinkedIn (linkedin.com/company/insurtechny).

Contact: David Gritz
press@insurtechny.com
215-650-9400