InsuranceDekho’s initial public offering (IPO) is still at least 18 months away, with a potential listing timeline extending to early FY27, founder and CEO Ankit Agrawal has said.
In an exclusive interview to Moneycontrol, the CEO said the insurance aggregator may take in an additional $10-15 million as part of its ongoing $70 million funding round.
Agrawal spoke to Moneycontrol on March 4 after InsuranceDekho announced a $70 million round led by Beams Fintech Fund, Japan’s Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG), and insurer BNP Paribas Cardif through its insurtech fund managed by European investment major Eurazeo.
While the company has initiated discussion for an IPO, it is too early to draw a timeline, Agrawal said. “Work is ongoing, but we will evaluate market conditions towards the end of this year,” he said.
“There’s always a buyer at a certain price for a good asset. But if the Sensex drops from 85,000 to 72,000, it reflects some market weakness. We keep meeting bankers to assess market conditions but our IPO is at least towards the end of 2026 or early 2027,” the CEO said.
Capital inflow
Agrawal said the $70-million round is ongoing, with existing investors doubling down. The firm has received interest from new investors, with a possibility of extending it beyond $85 million.
“We have not closed the round yet; we may take in another $10-15 million. All our existing investors have doubled down, and we will likely bring in one or two new investors. Raising Rs 600-700 crore in this market is a testament to what we have built,” he added.
Agrawal said the latest round was raised at a slight premium to previous valuation of $700–750 million in late 2023 during a Series B round, though he didn’t disclose the exact figure. Other investors include Goldman Sachs, Avataar Ventures, and LeapFrog Investments.
The funding round is entirely primary and not a pre-IPO round. “It is difficult to say whether this is a pre-IPO round or the last round before the IPO. If a quality investor comes in and sees value, we might consider it,” he said.
Reducing cash burn
The TVS Capital Funds and Investcorp-backed firm, which turned profitable in FY24, claims to be on track to sustain that momentum.
“We had a burn of about Rs 50-60 crore last year (FY24). This year (FY25), we will grow nearly 30-35 percent while reducing our burn by at least 20-25 percent.”
In FY24, InsuranceDekho turned profitable, with revenue spiking 7.7x. The company posted a profit of Rs 86 crore against a loss of Rs 51 crore in FY23, while operating revenue jumped to Rs 743 crore.
Founded in 2017, the Gurugram-based insurance aggregator claims to cover 98 percent of India’s pin codes and serve over 1.02 crore customers, offering more than 720 products across motor, health, life, and corporate segments.
Expanding business
In 2024, the company secured a composite insurance broking license from Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) to enter the re-insurance business.
It also launched a SaaS platform called Heph to streamline insurance distribution operations. The platform offers access to over 650 insurance products and enables co-creation with insurers, helping distributors optimise offerings.
InsuranceDekho is reportedly in talks to merge with smaller competitor RenewBuy, which would establish it as the second-largest player in the insurance aggregation market, competing with industry leader PolicyBazaar.
While he declined to comment on the deal, Agrawal said, “We are always on the lookout for good inorganic opportunities. If we find something compelling, we’d love to bring it into the InsuranceDekho family.”
While acknowledging some weakness in consumer sentiment, Agarwal remains optimistic about the long-term prospects of India’s insurance sector.
“The overall economic environment is not very conducive right now, and there is some impact on the industry. But under the guidance of the IRDAI chairman, the sector is launching new products and making pricing more transparent. Given India’s low insurance penetration, the industry will continue to grow," he said.
Agrawal also pointed to the government’s ‘Insurance for All by 2047’ initiative as a major growth driver. “This is the best time to be in the insurance industry,” he added.
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