Boston-based provider of data exchange for commercial insurance Wunderite secured a $3m seed funding round led by Spark Capital, which has also backed Affirm, Coinbase and Plaid.
The round also saw participation from Boston Seed, John Wepler from MarshBerry, Scott Addis from Beyond Insurance, Brian Hetherington from The ABD Team, Ty Harris from Openly, Andrew Krantz from York International, Heffernan Insurance Brokers, Trustco Inc and BrokerTech Ventures.
In conjunction with the funding, Wunderite added Spark Capital’s general partner Alex Finkelstein to its Board of Directors.
The company intends to use the funds to accelerate product development and increase distribution to agencies across the country. Wunderite also plans to expand its workforce from five people to as many as 15 over the next 12 months.
Before the $3m seed round, Wunderite had collected $130,000 in pre-seed funding. Last year, Wunderite participated in BrokerTech Venture’s first accelerator class and joined Techstars Boston.
Led by Peter MacDonald, Wunderite provides an annual subscription-based mobile-enabled SaaS platform that automates workflow, sales and underwriting process for independent insurance agents enabling them to serve customers purchasing or renewing Property & Casualty insurance.
The software centralises customer data to streamline the process of filling out insurance applications. Wunderite, which works alongside industry software such as Verafore and Applied, has partnered with a number of insurance broker trade groups and industry associations including InCite Performance Group and Beyond Insurance.
Data cited by Wunderite indicated that nearly 60% of property and casualty insurance policies are sold by independent agents, representing a $400bn market opportunity for companies like Wunderite.
Commenting on the firm’s plans, MacDonald said, “Having worked at my family’s insurance agency, I knew there was an enormous opportunity for agents to natively do business online. I leveraged my agency background and taught myself to code during business school to build a more delightful, efficient way for agents to connect with their customers.
“Wunderite shortens the application process, helping agents sell more deals. We are relentlessly focused on improving the customer experience.”
Echoing a similar sentiment, Finkelstein said, “The days of selling insurance during a round of golf or over drinks are vanishing. Buyers want to be efficient with their time and only buy what they need.
“Wunderite is allowing agents to be more valuable partners to their customers by offering a streamlined, data-driven product that helps them clearly understand what their options are. Wunderite allows them to deliver that in a smart and attractive way for promising ROI.”
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