London-based insurtech startup CatX has raised $2.7m (£2.15m) to connect insurers with capital providers and “bridge the gap” between supply and demand in the reinsurance industry.
CatX has created a marketplace that it says can help investors understand insurance risk. It provides tools including advanced risk models and portfolio exposure management.
The risk exchange startup says its platform is used by more than 15 institutional investors – including North American pension funds and hedge funds – to bridge the gap between supply and demand in reinsurance.
The seed funding round comes after CatX was accepted onto Y Combinator in June. The US accelerator’s alumni include UK tech firms Monzo and GoCardless.
Funding came from Silicon Valley VC firms and angel investors, including HackLegacy.
CatX was founded this year by University of Oxford graduates Benedict Altier and Lucas Schneider.
“Our goal is to help make the insurance industry more robust and adaptable in the face of increasing global challenges,” said Altier, who is the company’s CEO.
“In an era where the frequency and intensity of catastrophes are on the rise, the need for adequate capital to safeguard against these risks has never been more important.”
Altier added that CatX is “helping to close the growing protection gap” and unlock a “promising new asset class for investors that is uncorrelated to traditional investments like stocks and bonds”.