The African insurance industry is undergoing a digital revolution, driven by a new generation of insurtech startups tackling long-standing challenges such as low insurance penetration, poor trust in financial systems, and limited rural access.
These innovators are using mobile technology, artificial intelligence, and embedded platforms to make insurance faster, fairer, and more inclusive.
Here, Techparley provides a list of some of the top 10 insurtech startups driving change across Africa’s fragmented insurance landscape.
1. Curacel
Curacel is a pioneering Nigerian insurtech company that enables insurance companies to process and verify claims efficiently using artificial intelligence. It works with insurers and healthcare providers to detect fraud, reduce paperwork, and automate claim workflows, dramatically cutting processing time and improving transparency.
Curacel has quickly expanded across Africa, with clients in Ghana, Egypt, Kenya, and South Africa. Backed by Y Combinator and several notable investors, it’s positioning itself as a core infrastructure player that powers the backend of Africa’s insurance sector rather than a direct-to-consumer brand.
2. MyCover.ai
MyCover.ai is a B2B insurtech that enables other businesses to integrate and distribute insurance products using its robust API infrastructure. From digital banks to e-commerce firms, MyCover.ai powers the embedded insurance wave with compliance-ready and scalable tools.
The startup aggregates offerings from top underwriters, allowing partners to offer everything from travel to health insurance. While it operates behind the scenes, MyCover.ai plays a key role in expanding product access and speeding up insurance digitisation across Nigeria.
3. Goziri
Nigeria’s Goziri is making waves with its mobile-first insurance platform that provides accessible, offline-friendly health coverage for underserved Nigerians, particularly in rural and low-income communities. The app allows users to enrol, manage plans, and file claims entirely from their phones. without needing internet connectivity or in-person visits.
What sets Goziri apart is its focus on inclusivity. With flexible plans tailored for students, retirees, farmers, and small business owners, it directly targets the 97% of Nigerians who currently lack formal insurance. Backed by strong leadership and local partnerships, Goziri is scaling fast and building a replicable model for other low-penetration African markets.
4. Lami
Lami is a Kenyan insurtech that offers an API-based platform enabling businesses to seamlessly embed insurance into their services. Whether it’s e-commerce, logistics, or fintech, Lami allows partners to integrate coverage options, making insurance feel like a natural part of the customer journey.
Founded by Jihan Abass, Lami aims to democratise access by digitising policy issuance, claims, and distribution for African insurers. Its partnership with regional insurers and tech firms across East Africa is helping bridge the gap between providers and previously unreached customers.
5. aYo Holdings
With backing from MTN Group, aYo is bringing microinsurance to the masses by bundling insurance products with mobile airtime and mobile money services. Operating in Uganda, Ghana, Zambia, and Côte d’Ivoire, it provides affordable health and life insurance to millions of mobile phone users.
aYo’s success lies in its distribution model: leveraging telco partnerships to reach users in real-time, often without them needing to fill forms or visit branches. This simplicity and reach make aYo one of the most scalable insurtech models on the continent.
6. Inclusivity Solutions
Inclusivity Solutions works closely with mobile operators, insurers, and digital platforms to develop and distribute simple, digital insurance products across emerging markets. Its white-label platform supports health, life, and funeral policies, all designed with affordability and accessibility in mind.
Active in South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda, and Côte d’Ivoire, the startup is helping insurers digitise their offerings and reach the informal sector. Its partnership with Equity Bank and other financial players underscores the importance of embedded insurance in driving financial inclusion.
7. Turaco
Turaco is a microinsurance provider based in Kenya and Nigeria that focuses on life and health insurance for low-income earners. Through a B2B2C model, it partners with companies like motorcycle ride-hailing firms, fintechs, and digital lenders to provide bundled insurance for gig workers and informal sector employees.
Turaco is proving that scalable microinsurance can be both affordable and profitable. Its strong impact story and investor backing (including funds from Novastar and Mercy Corps Ventures) have earned it a place among Africa’s most promising insurtechs.
8. Cassava Fintech
A subsidiary of Econet Wireless, Cassava Fintech offers mobile-based insurance services through EcoSure and other platforms. These products range from burial societies to health coverage, targeting both rural Zimbabweans and the diaspora.
Cassava’s broad network and access to Econet’s infrastructure give it a competitive edge in reaching the last mile. While its model is more vertically integrated than others on this list, its scale and innovation remain noteworthy in southern Africa’s insurance landscape.
9. Pineapple
South Africa’s Pineapple is one of the continent’s most successful consumer-facing insurtech platforms. Known for its “peer-to-peer” insurance model, Pineapple allows users to take out car, content, and device insurance directly through a mobile app, with simplified onboarding and no need for paperwork.
Pineapple has gained popularity for its user-friendly interface and transparent pricing. The startup raised a $5.4 million Series A round in 2021, giving it ample runway to expand and enhance its data-driven underwriting capabilities.
10. WazInsure
WazInsure provides a cloud-based platform that digitises insurance processes for providers, brokers, and agents. Its end-to-end solution includes client onboarding, claims management, policy administration, and reporting, all designed to improve efficiency and reduce fraud.
The Nairobi-based startup has partnered with both local and regional insurers and is now exploring entry into other African markets. While not consumer-facing, WazInsure is building the infrastructure that makes seamless digital insurance possible on the continent.
