MMI Holdings supports international Startupbootcamp

Based in London, the programme invites global start-ups from across different areas within insurance, including consumer, re-insurance, back-office efficiency and new risk models, to apply to take part in the three-month accelerator programme.

The programme comprises Fast Track days, an Insurance Hackathon and an Insurance Lounge. Fast Track days (or pitch days) are sessions that take place over a six month period where ten start-ups in various venues across 12 countries are given five minutes to pitch their insurance related business idea to a panel of judges who will then interrogate the idea further in a one-on-one session.

Innovative solutions

At the 48 hour Insurance Hackathon, the insurance industry will challenge talent to come up with innovative and practical solutions to some of the questions they face as sector. The Insurance Lounge will provide later stage start-ups an opportunity to engage with executives and present their innovation idea to the Startupbootcamp investors. The ten successful start-ups sourced from the 12 countries will then go into a three month accelerator programme where they will be provided with resources necessary to birth their start-up idea.

"In the current and future environment where rapid change has become the norm, disruptive innovation has become important to create a sustainable future for not only MMI Holdings, but also for the wider insurance-based financial services sector. It is with a bigger disruptive innovation journey in mind that we have thrown our weight behind the Insurance Startupbootcamp," says MMI CEO, Nicolaas Kruger.

"Startupbootcamp prides itself on the development of early stage companies, connecting them with the relevant communities in order to thrive, and the Insurance Accelerator programme is no different," Nektarios Liolios, co-founder and global managing director, Startupbootcamp FinTech, said.

Untapped talent

"The insurance industry is calling out for innovation and there are hundreds of start-ups out there waiting to be discovered, and we want to nurture that untapped talent. There is a clear and ever-growing need to harness start-up innovation and join it up with the developed insurance sector. With the help of organisations such as MMI Holdings, we can create the only industry-wide initiative that looks to develop the digital innovation set to transform the insurance industry."

To support its innovation strategy, MMI has appointed executive Jaco Oosthuizen to lead the initiative from the United Kingdom. Oosthuizen will lead MMI's involvement in the Insurance Incubator while drawing on expertise across the MMI group in supporting the venture.