Insurtechs eye, move into nascent markets

According to reporting by TechCrunch, a new wave of insurtechs are specializing in niche, burgeoning markets. Boundless Rider, for example, covers motorcycle, e-bike, and power sport vehicle riders; and CoverTree covers manufactured homes.

Why should we care?
While insurtech valuations are down across the board, these hyperspecific insurtechs have the potential to become the big—or only—fish in a small pond, from which they can scale into other sectors or geographies. “Reimagining homeowner insurance for this difficult-to-serve insurance segment was a perfect wedge into the market, with massive potential to expand into other risk management-related products,” said Adam Blumencranz, Partner at Distributed Ventures, of CoverTree’s strategy. In fact, CoverTree already sees Boundless Rider’s bread and butter as its next market for expansion, since manufactured-home owners are more likely to own vehicles for outdoor recreation. But it remains to be seen how long this strategy will last before larger insurtechs or established insurance giants swoop in, whether through acquisitions or copycat strategies.