InsurTech Kin Going Public At $1B Value Via SPAC Merger

Insurance technology (InsurTech) company Kin is merging with the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Omnichannel Acquisition Corp. to go public on the NYSE under the ticker symbol “KI.” The combined entity will be called Kin Insurance and will be valued at an estimated $1.03 billion.

The deal includes an $80 million PIPE commitment led by HSCM Bermuda and Senator Investment Group, with participation from Gillson Capital, Park West Asset Management and other institutional investors, according to a press release on Monday (July 19).

The deal also includes backing from new strategic investors including Willis Group Holdings CEO Joe Plumeri; Stephen Ross, Jeff Blau and Bruce Beal of Related Companies; and VaynerMedia CEO Gary Vaynerchuk. Previous Series C investors included NBA All-Star Draymond Green and four-time champion golfer Rory McIlroy.

“The home insurance industry has been coasting for years on legacy technology and an antiquated way of interacting with customers. It is more than ripe for an innovative alternative, and that is exactly why we created Kin – to provide customers with a better home insurance offering, better pricing and an overall better experience,” said Kin Co-founder and CEO Sean Harper.

“Access to affordable home insurance is challenging in regions that are impacted by climate change and severe weather; at Kin, our proprietary technology and deep data advantage enable us to best evaluate risk and price home insurance fairly for consumers,” he added.

Kin operates across Florida, Louisiana and California, and is stepping up its move into new markets with the acquisition of an inactive insurance carrier that holds licenses in more than 40 states. The proposed stock purchase agreement deal, as well as the public offering, are anticipated to close in the last quarter of this year.

“The Kin team has leveraged its decades of insurance and FinTech experience to build a capital-efficient company that is experiencing outstanding growth across the board, along with compelling and superior unit economics,” said Omnichannel Chairman and CEO Matt Higgins, a serial entrepreneur who co-teaches a Harvard University course on digitally native brands. As COVID-19 necessitated a digital-first approach to everything, consumers’ relationships with insurance companies changed as well, and they put an increased value on medical and life insurance during the pandemic lockdowns.