Turaco partners with AXA Mansard for Nigerian expansion

East Africa's Turaco has announced its expansion to Nigeria through a corporate partnership with AXA Mansard and Turaco’s Nigerian subsidiary, Turaco Inclusive Ltd.  

Launched in 2019, Turaco is an insurtech startup providing a game changing platform for inclusive insurance, bridging the gap between great insurance companies and the distribution they need to see insurance products reach currently underserved clients at scale.

With over 90% of Nigerians still uninsured, the expansion represents a great opportunity for Turaco to make an impact in a largely untapped market. Turaco’s vision is to insure a billion people in the next 25 years and Nigeria will be a huge part of achieving that vision.

AXA Mansard is a member of the AXA Group, the worldwide leader in insurance and asset management with 153,000 employees serving 105 million clients in 54 countries. AXA Mansard Insurance plc. was incorporated in 1989 as a private limited liability company and is registered as a composite company with the National Insurance Commission of Nigeria (NAICOM).

“AXA is thrilled to partner with Turaco to expand the distribution of our inclusive insurance products. AXA is the best and most innovative insurance company in Nigeria. Aligning with forward-looking  partners like Turaco is a key component of what sets AXA apart.” Tope Adeniyi, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at AXA Mansard said.

Since its launch, Turaco and its subsidiaries have insured over 375,000 lives in Uganda and Kenya and paid thousands of claims with an average turnaround time of less than 3 business days. Building on its East African success, the startup is looking to disrupt the Nigerian insurance sector with its model.

With this expansion, Turaco will be joining Octamile, Casava and other competitors to power insurance in Nigeria.

“Turaco’s unique offering represents a fresh approach to insurance in the country. Through partnerships with leading insurance underwriters like AXA, the startup offers medical insurance for as little as 500 Naira ($1.20) per month.” the insurtech startup state.  

For distribution, Turaco partners with existing fintech companies and service providers to sell insurance as a bundled service to their users. Using Turaco, low-income earners can comfortably pay to protect themselves and their loved ones.

According to Turaco's Co-Founder & CEO, Ted Pantone “Now is the time for insurance to grow in Nigeria. Every fintech we speak to wants to add insurance as a part of their offering, and Turaco is built to make it incredibly easy to do that.”

Ted added that “our technology, bespoke insurance product designs, and active partnership approach means that we can go from initial conversation to launching insurance with a partner in a matter of days. We are really excited for what this partnership with AXA will mean for the growth of insurance coverage in Nigeria.”

In 2020, the insurtech startup raised $2m seed fund in equity investments to scale its operations in Sub-Saharan Africa.