Aviva Ventures, Aviva plc’s venture capital arm, today announces its investment in Roost, a US-based home telematics start-up. The $10.4 million Series B funding round was led by Aviva Ventures and is the first investment it has made in the US market. The round also saw participation by Desjardins Insurance, Fosun RZ Capital and existing investors, bringing Roost’s total funding to date to $17 million.
Roost has created a number of home telematics solutions including Roost Smart Battery, the Roost Smart Water Leak and Freeze Detector solutions. Their patented, connected platform of data sensors makes installation simple and affordable for customers. The investment round also represents a strategic partnership between Aviva and Roost; Aviva has already started to offer Roost’s Smart Battery to its UK customers.
Ben Luckett, Managing Director at Aviva Ventures, said:
“As a corporate venture fund, we look for innovative businesses around the world that will shape the future of insurance and we are delighted to be entering the US market with this investment in Roost.
Roost has great technology and a strong team and I am excited about how this investment supports our ambition to empower our customers to prevent bad things from happening, rather than fixing it when something goes wrong.”
Roel Peeters, co-founder and CEO of Roost said:
“We are very excited to have the participation of three major insurers in our latest investment round. This commitment is a strong validation of Roost’s value proposition as a leader in the emerging Home Telematics Insurance segment. The new funding will be used to continue our product development efforts as well as expand new product services for our insurance partners.”
Enquiries:
Aviva:
Marte Borhaug
+44 (0)7800 698 945
Marte.borhaug@aviva.com
Roost:
Peter Evers, Natron Communications for Roost
+1 (415) 888-3314
peter@natroncomm.com
Notes to editors:
Aviva:
- Aviva provides life insurance, general insurance, health insurance and asset management to 33 million customers.
- In the UK we are the leading insurer serving one in every four households and have strong businesses in selected markets in Europe, Asia and Canada. Our shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange and we are a member of the FTSE100 index.
- Aviva’s asset management business, Aviva Investors, provides asset management services to both Aviva and external clients, and currently manages over £340 billion in assets. Total group assets under management at Aviva group are £450 billion.
- Aviva helps people save for the future and manage the risks of everyday life; we paid out £34.4 billion in benefits and claims in 2016.
- By serving our customers well, we are building a business which is strong and sustainable, which our people are proud to work for, and which makes a positive contribution to society.
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Roost:
Roost is a technology company headquartered in Sunnyvale, CA. As creators of the Roost Smart Battery and the Roost Smart Water Leak and Freeze Detector, Roost has developed a unique, patented, connected platform of data sensors that deliver the ultimate in installation simplicity and the most affordable way for insurers to provide Home Telematics solutions. Roost’s primary go-to-market approach is through Insurance companies deploying directly to their policyholders. The effect is a reduction in claim cost expenses (fire and water perils costing $20B per year in the US), as well as driving policyholder engagement through a content rich, digital mobile app experience, impacting retention and customer acquisition. For more information, please visit www.getroost.com.