Volvo Financial Services (VFS), the global finance division of automobile manufacturing giant Volvo, has made an investment in REIN, an insurance technology (Insurtech) firm.
REIN has created a configurable platform that lets insurance carriers build and deploy their own programs and solutions. This allows them to make better decisions about choosing risk, pricing risk, and distributing products. REIN’s platform may be used to launch various connected insurance services to the commercial automotive industry.
REIN’s management showcased its platform at iLabX, VFS’s accelerator program for startups.
The company recently finalized a Series A $14.3 million investment round. In addition to VFS, Liberty Mutual Strategic Ventures, Plug and Play Ventures, Kiplin Capital and several family office investors also took part in REIN’s funding round.
According to a release, VFS Innovations Ventures, a newly established entity within VFS, has joined the REIN investor group – after VFS’s investment in the insurtech company. The organizations aim to look into “customized data-driven solutions that increase safety and improve the overall insurance experience for Volvo Group customers.”
Volvo Group EVP and VFS president Scott Rafkin stated:
“We recognize that new financial technologies are changing our customers’ priorities and presenting opportunities to improve performance. REIN’s data-focused approach aligns with our commitment to adopting new solutions that reduce total cost of ownership and support driver safety.”
Rafkin noted that VFS’s partnership with REIN will help both organizations in developing the “next generation of financial service solutions.”
REIN co-founder and president Steve Rabbitt remarked:
“Having VFS at the table will be invaluable as we continue to bring insurtech solutions to the commercial vehicle sector.”
Both firms intend to introduce the product in the US during the first half of next year, with a global launch scheduled at some point in the forseeable future.
In July 2018, REIN secured $7.3 million in funding from Liberty Mutual Strategic Ventures and Kiplin Capital; individual and family office investors, Jason Griswold (Founder, Brown Aviation Lease), Christopher Ellis (Managing Director at AvPro, Inc), Bert Roberts (former CEO of MCI), Steve Rabbitt (Formerly Founder/CEO at The Registry), and Anderson Bell (Senior Executive, AvPro, Inc.).
Established in 2015, REIN’s platform was developed to use unstructured business data to better assess risk, particularly the emerging risks associated with ongoing technological advancement within mobility, robotics, and online ecosystems.
REIN has said firms that use the platform can better adapt to changing customer behavior, and demand for speed and simplicity in insurance products.