Sunday, August 31, 2025
29.3 C
Lagos

ETAP Secures $1.5m Funding to Drive Car Insurance Penetration in Africa

ETAP, an insurtech startup that makes it easier to buy and claim insurance, has secured $1.5 million in pre-seed funding to grow its team and drive the adoption of much-needed car insurance across Africa. Starting in Nigeria, the new funding will support the roll-out of ETAP’s game-changing app which allows drivers to buy insurance in 90 seconds, complete claims in 3 minutes or less and get rewarded for good driving and avoiding accidents.

The pre-seed funding round was led by Mobility 54 (the Venture Capital arm of Toyota Tsusho and CFAO Group), with participation from Tangerine Insurance, Graph Ventures (invested in Clubhouse), Newmont and other angel investors.

Working with a wide range of automotive value chain players, ETAP will also explore other opportunities to deliver much-needed insurance services for car owners in other countries across the continent.

Despite longstanding regulation making car insurance compulsory and more than 100,000 car accidents reported between January 2019 and December 2021, only one in five cars in Nigeria are currently insured. The complexities of buying and claiming insurance has led to widespread apathy for traditional insurance companies and products, with many car owners opting to go without insurance. With ETAP, the entire process of buying and claiming insurance happens exclusively on a smartphone, enabling a seamless and enjoyable insurance experience for users.

ETAP uses machine learning to build intelligent risk profiles that determine appropriate premiums for each driver, allowing them to achieve lower premiums by driving safely.

Using advanced telematics, the driving experience is gamified to improve driving behaviour and drivers can earn Safe Driving Points that can be exchanged for shopping vouchers for the most in-demand retail outlets, fuel, cinema and concert tickets, and other exciting experiences.

Drivers also have flexible coverage options, including daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual plans depending on their needs. In the unfortunate event of an accident, they simply need to take a picture of the affected part of the car via the app and the artificial intelligence processes the claim based on previously uploaded images. The app comes with geolocation tags, timestamps and other features to prevent fraudulent claims, as well as crash notification, emergency support and more.

Since launching in beta in November 2021, ETAP has insured more than 130,000 individual trips and over 500,000 kilometres in car journeys, which represents more than eight times the total distance of paved roads in Nigeria.

According to Ibraheem Babalola, CEO and founder of ETAP, “Just like any other digital service, we believe Nigerians should be able to buy and claim car insurance without having to ‘call a guy’. We also believe that rewarding good drivers can be a catalyst for better driving and making our roads safer. This is why we have created Africa’s most powerful car insurance app and we are excited to have raised these funds to bring more users on board. Too often, the process of buying and claiming insurance in Africa is so out of touch with the everyday reality of most people but we are changing the game and making the process just as enjoyable as any other experience that consumers access on the mobile phone.”

Yumi Takagi, Project Manager at Mobility 54 said, “ETAP is addressing many challenges that impact the automotive experience in Africa and we are excited to support and work with them to bring their innovation to more drivers across the continent. We believe that ETAP will engage with this important role and revolutionize the automotive insurance industry with their powerful technology.”

spot_img
spot_img

Hot this week

Inspenonline Unveils Think-tank on NIIRA, Insurance Sector Recapitalisation

As the insurance sector witnesses a new dawn with...

SanlamAllianz, Cornerstone, emPLE, Enterprise Life, Leadway, Lasaco Throw Weight Behind IMT 4.0

The fourth edition of Insurance Meets Tech (IMT 4.0)...

NCDMB, Coppercrux Engage South-South Youths on CNG Technologies, Opportunities in Value Chains

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), in...

Fidelity Bank Champions Africa’s Export Growth at FNITCC Atlanta 2025

Leading financial institution, Fidelity Bank Plc has announced plans...

NAICOM, CAC Partner for 12- Month Recapitalisation Timeline

The Management of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) paid...

Topics

NIGERIA Set to Host 47th AIO Conference 2020

Tope Smart Chairman Nigerian Insurers Association The Federal Republic of Nigeria is...

Heritage Bank Seeks Banks, Fintechs’ Partnership on Financial Inclusion

Heritage Bank Plc has stressed the need for sustained...

NAICOM Commends Passage of Insurance Reform Bill

The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) welcomes the passage of...

Root Capital, The MasterCard Foundation to Raise Income for 300,000 Farmers in West Africa

Impact investing pioneer, Root Capital announced at the African...

AfDB Unveils ‘New Deal for Energy in Africa’

The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) unveiled its landmark initiative to solve Africa’s huge energy deficit by 2025 at a High Level Stakeholder Consultative Meeting attended by business and political leaders at its headquarters in Abidjan. The “New Deal for Energy in Africa,” which charts the way for a transformative partnership on energy focuses on mobilising support and funding for the initiative from five key areas.

Africa Offshore Oil Development Attracts U.S. Grant

The United States and Nigeria are teaming up to...

Sterling One Foundation, United Nations Nigeria Unveil Africa Social Impact Summit 2024

The official press conference for the Africa Social Impact...

Olashore Alumnus, Falana, Wins 2016 BET Awards

An Olashore International School Alumnus, Mr. Folarin Falana, popularly...
spot_img

Related Articles

Popular Categories

spot_imgspot_img