U.S. based private equity and operating firm HCS Capital announced on Tuesday it invested $3 million in Jooycar, a Chilean insurtech that is seeking to disrupt the auto insurance and telematics space in Latin America. HSC Capital reported that the insurtech investment marks the most recent for HCS, as they continue to deploy capital from its Tech Fund 1 into insurtech and fintech opportunities in the U.S. and South America.
Founded in 2014, Jooycar described itself as the first connected car platform to launch in Latin America. The company claimed its telematic-based technology leverages real-time big data sourced from cars and drivers to deliver enhanced end-user services (B2C) and create new business opportunities for the insurance and automotive industries (B2B).
“With Jooycar connected car service, our consumers receive a telematic hardware device (while the cars still do not have this hardware embedded) and an account that provides users with access to their connected car services through a web portal and a mobile app.”
Jooycar also reported that it has seen 400% annual growth and will have nearly 40 million kilometers processed on their platform by the end of the year in Chile alone. This round of funding will allow the insurtech to capitalize on the success in Latin America and expand to the U.S., a $280 billion annual auto insurance premium market. Speaking about the investment, HCS Capital CEO, Alex Horvitz, stated:
“We have continued to be impressed by Jooycar’s achievements over the past 3 years. Their impressive platform, which will allow them to rapidly scale, combined with their team and vision for growth in the U.S. and Latin American markets is an exciting combination and we are proud to be a part of Jooycar’s growth and U.S. expansion.”
María Paz Gillet, Founder of Jooycar, went on to add:
“We chose HCS Capital over other investors due to their hands-on experience in InsurTech digital platforms. They are a strategic partner with the will, industry knowledge and resources to actively support the globalization of our company.”