Israel, the “Startup Nation,” is turning its focus to insurtech in a big way. Why should the rest of the world take notice?
Celent has released a new report titled Insurtech in Israel: Global Implications. The report was written by Donald Light, a Research Director in Celent’s Insurance practice.
Israel is a small country that is a global leader in technology and VC-fueled startups. In March 2017 Intel paid over $15 billion to acquire Mobileye (a provider of key technologies for autonomous cars). Even before this transaction, Israeli insurtech activity had been booming. This report describes the foundations of that activity, and what it means for the global insurance and insurtech sectors.
The past two years have seen rapid growth in Israeli insurtech activity focusing on underwriting, fraud/analytics, distribution, and cyber-insurance. Fintech has the ability to draw on the strengths of Israel’s startup ecosystem, including strengths in security, mobility, and technical skills developed in elite Israeli military units.
“Given Israel’s combination of geostrategic challenges, outstanding technical and scientific education, major presence of global technology firms, and an army which exploits technological advantages, it is not surprising that many startups in Israel focus on two major themes: cybersecurity and fraud,” Light said.
“Each element of the startup ecosystem, such as very good technical education, is present in Israeli insurtech,” he added.
