2 - 4 minute read
Life insurance company Meanwhile Insurance Bitcoin (Bermuda) has raised $19 million to develop an AI-aided bitcoin-denominated policy as it looks to capitalize on the growing economy surrounding the largest cryptocurrency. The Bermuda Monetary Authority-licensed company raised the funds across two seed rounds, with the second led by Gradient Ventures. Meanwhile Insurance was previously known as Standard Crypto Insurance and is registered under that name with the BMA.
The company plans to use AI to help with underwriting, claims, and operations. Its initial target audience is US citizens with large BTC holdings who are looking to protect their families in a tax-advantaged way, an audience from which CEO Zac Townsend said the firm has “seen a lot of early demand.” The company plans to hire a development team for its first product, which will be denominated in BTC.
According to Townsend, the company is “building the life insurance company for” the hundreds of millions of people expected to onboard into the bitcoin economy in the coming decades. While the insurer may be relatively immune to bitcoin fluctuations, policyholders will be shouldering some of the risk because price changes will determine the value of their payouts.
Townsend said the volatility typically associated with the bitcoin price isn’t a concern for Meanwhile. “Market moves that impact the price of BTC do not impact our underwriting or our guarantees because we take premiums and pay out claims in BTC,” he said.
The Bottom Line
Meanwhile Insurance’s funding round has allowed the company to develop its first AI-aided, bitcoin-denominated policy, which is aimed at US citizens with large BTC holdings. The company believes that hundreds of millions of people will be onboarding into the bitcoin economy in the coming decades and is positioning itself as “the life insurance company for them.” While the insurer may be relatively immune to bitcoin fluctuations, policyholders will be shouldering some of the risk because price changes will determine the value of their payouts.
