Meet Azos, insurtech that has already raised greater than R$ 100 million and new accomplice of the large Swiss Re

From the agreement, the startup wants to print a new rhythm of launching products

In the mid-2021 market, insurtech Azos gained a strong reinforcement in its development and expansion strategy. The Brazilian startup has just closed an agreement with Swiss Re, one of the largest reinsurers in the world. Previously, this position was occupied by IRB Brasil.

Azos operates in the life insurance market and, based on the partnership, intends to accelerate the launch of products. Currently, it offers four options and wants to arrive in December this year with more than double, ten.

Among the new services planned, options involving surgery, disability due to illness and premium funeral assistance, with coverage for the policy beneficiary and other family members.

“I would say that what the market can expect from Azos is the launch of many products and with much greater frequency”, says Rafael Cló, co-founder and CEO of Azos.

In addition to the agility to introduce new coverages, the partnership has an immediate effect: the increase in the limit value of the policies and in the grace period. In life insurance, for example, the capital limit went from R$ 2 million to R$ 3 million and the grace period dropped from 60 to 30 days.

The expectation is that the Swiss giant will also contribute to formatting, pricing and risk analysis of products, based on the experience and knowledge acquired in other countries. “In this way, Swiss Re brings its own risk, data and innovation capabilities together to help make societies more resilient,” says Fred Knapp, Head of Reinsurance Brazil & Southern Cone at Swiss Re.

How Azos was founded

Insurtech arrived on the market as an initiative by Cló and his friends Renato Farias (former director of international operations at DogHero) and Bernardo Ribeiro (former marketing manager at Burger King).

The idea came after Rafael suffered with the bureaucracies of a Brazilian insurance company of which he was a client. At the time, he was living in the United States and working at Kraft Heinz. Upon discovering that the installments of a policy were not being paid because his card had expired, he had to deal with a sequence of problems related to:

• settlement of debts
• difficulties accessing the customer portal
• Miscommunication with the company
• Old-fashioned cancellation policy with hand-to-hand written letter required

Amidst the headaches, Cló saw the opportunity to build something in this market. With the other two partners, she focused on the insurance sector, observing successful cases in the American industry and business models.

At the launch of insurtech, the offer of policies from R$ 5.00, a value that remains until today. A marketing strategy, but also a way to show a new movement in the sector, known for working with values ​​starting from three digits.

For the service, it has its own technology and uses artificial intelligence to offer a quick analysis of the most suitable solution to the profile of the potential client. The products are developed with Excelsior Seguros, a partner since the beginning of the operation and responsible for the connection with Swiss Re.

What is the current size of the business

Without revealing numbers, Cló says that the startup grew in annual recurring revenue four times in 2022. For this year, the expected pace is three times. In terms of insured capital, the startup exceeded the value of 10 billion reais.

The business dialogues with an adult audience, 60% of customers are men around 40 years of age and upper middle class, with family income above R$ 10,000. Despite the democratization proposal, Cló recognizes that bringing insurance to other sections of the population is still a challenge.

“Whether they like it or not, Brazilians on the lowest social income still have difficulty making recurring insurance payments, but the company’s goal is to democratize access to good products,” he says.

The evolution of the startup in the Brazilian market has been supported by more than 100 million reais in investments. Behind the figure are funds such as Prosus (formerly Naspers Ventures), Kaszek Ventures, Maya Capital and Munich Re Ventures, the venture capital arm of reinsurer Munich Re.

Source: Exam