AIG Israel, managed by Shay Feldman, today marked the 20th anniversary of its business in Israel by announcing its intention to look for innovative Israeli insurtech companies and invest in them. Feldman said, "We are great believers in this sector, and have already met with companies operating in it. There is potential here in insurtech, because the influence of technology on insurance is fairly minor."
Feldman said that AIG Israel had not yet invested in Israeli startups, but "This measure, which is being coordinated with the global headquarters and encouraged by it, will focus on a number of important areas regarded by AIG as relevant, mainly the user experience, big data analysis, and Internet of Things (IoT)."
Feldman added, "What all these sectors have in common is their ability to improve the company's products and adapt them to clients, improve pricing for policies, and improve the client's experience."
Financing and advice
According to Feldman, the company has no restrictions on the volume of its investments in these startups, which are likely to amount to millions of dollars.
AIG Israel VP business strategy and development Orna Karni says, "In meetings we held with dozens of startups in recent months, we learned that beyond financial investment, a large proportion of the ventures need substantial business advice in order to adjust to the insurance market and local regulation in Israel." She adds that senior executives from company headquarters in New York are scheduled to visit Israel in May for a series of meetings with Israeli startup managers.
AIG Israel stated, "In our 20 years of doing business in Israel, the company has sold over 3.5 million policies feature a range of insurance products… AIG customers have an average of over two of the company's policies." Italian insurance company Generali sold its controlling interest in Migdal Insurance and Financial Holdings Ltd. (TASE: MGDL) to Shlomo Eliahu in late 2012, leaving AIG as the sole international insurance player directly active in the Israeli insurance market.
Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on February 7, 2017
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