HSCM pumps further funds into Buckle

HSCM Bermuda has increased its stake in insurtech auto insurer Buckle Corp. The ILS and reinsurance investment manager was among the participants in the start-up’s completed $60 million Series B funding round, along with Greenwich, Connecticut-based Eldridge, and Assurant Ventures, Assurant’s venture capital investment arm.

HSCM Bermuda has also expanded the company’s surplus term loan from $10 million to $20 million to provide additional capital supporting the premium growth of Buckle’s Gateway Insurance Company.

According to Buckle, the capital will help the company develop its “full-stack insurance-as-a-service platform” as it seeks to “reimagine financial services for the gig economy”.

The company’s core “hybrid auto insurance policy” for rideshare and delivery drivers uses data from Transportation Network Company platforms to underwrite policies. Using rideshare and delivery data instead of credit scores, the policy helps close the gap created by conventional insurance policies that leave gig workers underinsured or with higher premiums, it says.

“This new raise helps validate Buckle’s positive momentum across its insurance programs and reinforces our belief in the opportunity for growth the Company faces today,” said Marty Young, co-founder and CEO of Buckle.

“Through our capital-efficient, multi-carrier strategy, we’re expanding our digital insurance platform nationwide so that we can offer a range of attractive insurance options to US gig economy workers, many of whom have been considered essential workers throughout the pandemic.”