MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Fintech Oko Secures $500k in Equity from Katapult, Individual Investors to Expand Agricultural Insurance to Cote d’Ivoire

Oko Finance, an agricultural insurance company active in Mali and Uganda, recently raised USD 500,000 in equity to expand its operations to Cote d’Ivoire. Founded in 2017 and based in Mali, Oko insures 15,000 farmers growing cotton, grains and coffee in partnership with local insurers, using satellite data to make payouts when variables such as rainfall exceed or do not exceed pre-arranged benchmarks. Oko policies – whose premiums averaged USD 20 per season as of 2021 – can be purchased via the Orange Money payment app of Orange, a France-based telecommunications company, without need for smartphone. The Germany-based insurer Allianz Group is also an implementation partner of Oko.

The investment package comes from Katapult, a Norway-based “impact tech accelerator” and three individuals, Henry Allard, Lionel Dorie and Guillaume Leenhardt. Founded in 2016, Katapult manages USD 100 million in assets placed in 145 companies in 37 countries as of 2022.

Founded in 1988, Orange is a mobile network operator and digital services provider. As of 2020, the firm served 259 million customers in 26 countries and employed 142,000 people. In 2022, it reported recent one-year revenue of EUR 42.5 billion (USD 43.5 billion).

Founded in Berlin in 1890, Allianz Group provides insurance and asset management services to 100 million customers in 70 countries. For 2021, it reported an operating profit of EUR 3.5 billion (USD 3.58 billion) ending the year with assets under management of EUR 2.6 trillion (USD 2.66 trillion).

Sources and Additional Resources

Disrupt Africa article
https://disrupt-africa.com/2022/06/29/mali-based-insurtech-oko-raises-500k-seed-extension-round-for-ivory-coast-expansion/

AgFunderNews article on Oko
https://agfundernews.com/oko-finance-is-delivering-crop-insurance-to-cushion-malis-farmers-from-intensifying-weather-patterns

Katapult homepage
https://katapult.vc

Oko homepage
https://www.oko.finance

OKO partners page
https://www.oko.finance/partners

Allianz annual report 2021
https://www.allianz.com/investor_relations/results-reports/annual-reports.html

Orange homepage
https://www.orange.com

Orange overview presentation
https://www.orange.com/group/overview/orange-group-explore-our-actions-pictures

Previous MicroCapital article on Allianz
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-allianz-commits-24m-to-final-close-of-huruma-fund-investor-in-rural-microfinance/

Previous MicroCapital article on Orange
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-empire-mosabi-orange-uncdf-seek-to-boost-financial-inclusion-in-sierra-leone-with-focus-on-financial-literacy-recruiting-women-as-mobile-money-agents/

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