Oona Insurance acquires MAPFRE in PH through buy-and-build

by Elton Gagni / October 24, 2022

Global growth investor Warburg Pincus and “seasoned” executive Abhishek Bhatia recently announced a USD350 million equity commitment to establish Oona Insurance (Oona), also known as Aseana Insurance, a digital general insurance platform in Southeast Asia. 

Through a buy-and-build strategy, Oona aims to become the pre-eminent digital general insurance platform in Southeast Asia, as it acquires companies including Mapfre Insular Insurance Corporation in the Philippines and PT Asuransi Bina Dana Arta Tbk (ABDA) in Indonesia, both of which will be rebranded to Oona eventually.

According to a press release, the acquisition allows Oona to offer products including motor, property, and group health insurance, which are designed to be fit-for-market and well-suited to meet local customer demands. The newly established company is also set to introduce new products such as travel, health as well as products that are emerging on the back of increasing adoption of internet, e-commerce, and digital payments.

Oona Group CEO Abhishek Bhatia said that general insurance is a “significantly underpenetrated” industry in the region and that it is already “ripe” for digital disruption. “Legacy systems and mindset amongst incumbents provide a real opportunity to create a truly customer-focused organization with a strong tech and brand spine,” said Bhatia.

Warburg Pincus Managing Director Saurabh Agarwal describes Oona as “well positioned” to capture the growth opportunity for digital insurance across Southeast Asia, with its consistently rising incomes and accelerating digital adoption. 

“We are excited about our partnership with Abhishek and Oona’s talented management team and look forward to leveraging our deep expertise in the insurance sector to support Oona’s growth aspirations. With our steadfast commitment, we are confident that Oona will evolve into a truly differentiated platform that will consolidate the market and create the most compelling insurance products to reach the massively underserved market in the region,” said Agarwal.

The press release also said the investment “is consistent with Warburg Pincus’ approach of investing capital and resources behind best-in-class entrepreneurs to create de novo platforms to capture the high-growth opportunities in the region.” For more than 30 years, the company has invested over $3 billion of equity capital in over 25 insurance companies globally that operate across all parts of the insurance value chain.

“With the support of Warburg Pincus, Oona will continue to explore opportunities to deepen the depth and breadth of its presence in key markets in Southeast Asia. All the assets and operations will be consolidated under a coherent operating model and a common brand and tech stack, positioning us well to capture the rapidly growing opportunities for digital general insurance in the region,” said Bhatia.

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