Why We Invested: Sunday
Insurance is an important way for people all over the world to achieve financial resilience. Yet in Thailand, it’s historically been quite difficult for people to find insurance that meets their needs — and a lack of insurance leaves millions vulnerable to financial shocks. It’s no surprise, then, that Thailand’s insurance penetration is low — below 7%. High premiums, long wait times, difficult claims processes, poor repairs, and opaque policies have historically been the norm in the insurance market across Thailand, as well as most of the markets in South East Asia.
Enter insurtech company Sunday. Launched in 2017 by Cindy Kua with incubation support from KSK Group, Sunday offers end-to-end insurance products and services powered by its machine-learning risk prediction engines. The company aims to serve all of its customers as the “one-stop insurance shop” for whatever insurance they need, be it healthcare, mobile gadgets, motor vehicle or travel insurance.
So why do we at Quona find this so exciting? While legacy insurance providers target broader groups in Thailand with “one-size-fits-all” products, Sunday sets itself apart by using artificial intelligence and machine learning to develop better risk models, assess customers’ lifestyle behavior data, and dynamically design customized products that meet individuals’ specific needs — all at far more competitive prices than the norm. This better customer experience brings insurance within the reach of millions more consumers, and ultimately, can increase financial resilience across the population.
How does Sunday do it? The company:
- Is an end-to-end dual insurer and broker. Sunday can develop better insights into its clients throughout the customer journey, refining products and operations along the way to cater to users’ needs
- Is designed from the ground up to make insurance more affordable, inclusive, and transparent for consumers
- Uses a proprietary digital platform to manage the sales and after-sales services for various insurance products, including auto, health, insurance, and flight delay coverage
- Offers employee health benefits that feature real-time claims management for small and medium enterprises
Sunday targets a range of businesses in manufacturing and trade, retail and service industries, which collectively power more than 87% of Thailand’s GDP.
With nearly one million policies written by the end of 2019 and a clear plan to expand to other Southeast Asian countries beginning in early 2020, we’re excited to back Sunday!
Read the full press release here.
Quona Capital is a scale-up stage venture firm focused on fintech for inclusion in emerging markets. Quona partners have deep experience as investors and operators in both emerging and developed markets, and look for entrepreneurs whose companies have the potential to provide outstanding financial returns and promote breakthrough innovation in financial inclusion. To date, Quona has supported more than 20 financial technology companies expanding access for underserved consumers and small businesses in Latin America, South and Southeast Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Quona got its start through a strategic relationship with Accion, a global nonprofit with a pioneering legacy in microfinance and fintech impact investing. The firm has offices in Washington D.C., Bangalore, Cape Town, Mexico City and Singapore. For more information, visit quona.com.
Disclaimer: Quona portfolio companies were selected for profiles based on objective, non-performance-based criteria for the purpose of illustrating the types of investment made by Quona funds and their impacts. These profiles are being provided for illustrative purposes only, in order to provide examples of the idea generation, research, and thought process of Quona investment teams. No representation is made as to whether or if the investment ideas represented in these profiles have been or will be profitable. It should not be assumed that Quona will be able to identify similar investment opportunities in the future, or that any such opportunities will be profitable. The above statements include the opinions of the Firm and are for illustrative purposes only. There is no assurance that any trends depicted or objectives described in Quona profiles will continue or become successful.
