The Bermuda Monetary Authority has granted a licence to Breach Insurance, an insurtech start-up that is building insurance technology and products for the growing cryptocurrency market.
The BMA has given Breach permission to launch a new class IIGB insurer, which will allow Breach to underwrite emerging crypto risks as a primary insurer, with a key focus on the development of bespoke embedded products tailor made for crypto native technologies.
Founded in 2018, insurtech Breach was created with a mission to make crypto safer by creating net new insurance capacity (see New Crypto DeFi Crime Trends).
Breach Insurance is a global insurance underwriter addressing the significant insurance gap in the crypto space by creating regulated insurance solutions for the crypto economy.
With a Bermuda domiciled insurance company, US licensed MGA and TPA operations, Breach is able to address the various needs of crypto economy participants (see Decentralized Exchanges Risks Review).
The IIGB licence is a special innovation class licence designed for underwriting crypto risks. With the full-stack carrier, Breach has obtained regulatory authority to operate natively in both crypto and fiat with the ability to denominate policies, receive payments, and pay claims all in crypto.
There is a significant underwriting and actuarial gap for custom insurance solutions that the company is solving for with its expanded offering.
The new offerings will be available through Breach’s proprietary insurtech platform via simple APIs that can help partners embed regulated insurance into their technology in a few weeks instead of several months.
These capabilities are unique as only a handful of insurers currently have the licence and also important to the crypto space as risks can now be underwritten natively in the same asset.
Breach said it had also raised a fresh round of funding led by RW3 and LightShed Ventures, with participation from Raptor, Foundation Capital, Road Capital, Republic Capital, and Alumni Ventures.
The capital raised will be used to launch the new Bermuda insurance carrier and to continue growing its countrywide licensed MGA in the US. Breach is also expanding its proprietary insurtech platform for use with upcoming commercial-grade products.
The crypto industry has been grappling with rising regulatory scrutiny while looking for ways to gain credibility with both investors and the public
Jamie Seltzer, LightShed Ventures general partner and co-founder
“We view insurance as one of the first steps in professionalising and safeguarding the industry, and we believe the Breach team has the experience, approach, and timing to the market to bring effective coverage to both individuals and businesses.”
Led by CEO Eyhab Aejaz, Breach is an insurtech with an exclusive focus on crypto risks developing creative and regulated insurance solutions by utilizing their deep crypto and insurance industry expertise.
The launch of our insurance carrier is a major milestone not only for Breach, but also the crypto industry.
Breach CEO Eyhab Aejaz
With the capability to iterate on products, pricing, and the delivery of products, insurtech aim to unlock significant potential that the crypto market has been held back from.
by Peter Sonner
