Avaana Capital co-founder takes over reins at India's Coverfox

Jha replaces Premanshu Singh who left the firm after nearly three years at the helm. According to Indian media reports, Coverfox also lost CTO Devendra Rane last month.

Singh previously claimed that Coverfox was earning $25 million in annual revenue, but it is unclear if this has been outpaced by the company's losses. He has since joined Paytm as a vice-president, according to a statement by the payments start-up.

Existing PE investors in Coverfox, apart from Avaana, include SAIF Partners, Accel Partners, and Catamaran Ventures. In 2018, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and US-based insurance firm Transamerica led a $22 million Series B round, but the company has not raised any equity funding since then. During this time, Singh reportedly indicated he was actively looking to raise private equity funding.

Local media reported a proposed merger with Paytm fell through last year chiefly because Japan’s SoftBank, an investor in Paytm, was also a backer of Policybazaar, Coverfox’s leading rival. In 2018, Policybazaar raised $200 million in a Series F round led by SoftBank Vision Fund.

Founded in 2013, Coverfox operates a digital platform that aggregates insurance packages offered by 35 partners covering health, car, bike, life, and travel policies. Another Coverfox founder, Varun Dua, left the firm in 2016 to launch online insurance provider Acko General Insurance which underwrites its own insurance policies.  

Mumbai-based Avaana has made three early-stage private equity investments in India. Other firms in its portfolio include LoanTap, an app-based personal loan provider, and bicycle manufacturer Alphavector.

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• Topics
• South Asia
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• India
• insurance
• SAIF Partners
• Accel Partners
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