Centana Growth Partners—a growth equity firm specializing in the financial services ecosystem—announced that it has acquired a majority stake in insurance technology platform company First Connect Insurance Services (formerly an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Hippo Holdings). Aviad Pinkovezky will continue as President and has been named CEO post-closing.
Centana led this initial investment (exceeding $60 million) with participation from Pruven Capital, Cota Capital, and Cross Creek. And this funding will enable First Connect to accelerate product growth, expand market penetration, and continue its efforts to be the insurtech platform, offering independent insurance agents with fast access to carriers and tech-driven workflows.
The market of independent agents (IAs) is growing. However, the ability to offer diversified insurance products that best suit policyholders’ personal and commercial needs remains lacking. There are tens of thousands of IAs producing hundreds of billions of dollars in premiums in the U.S.. But carriers face significant challenges in directly appointing and collaborating with these agents due to the administrative burdens of vetting, onboarding, and monitoring them.
Even though market access is a long-standing problem for independent agents, First Connect addresses it with a tech-first approach that expedites critical market access to carriers, enhances agent workflows, and enables faster, more efficient policy quoting.
In the U.S., independent agents represent nearly two-thirds of the property and casualty (P&C) insurance market. First Connect offers agents seamless access to a broader network of carriers and MGAs in an easy-to-use digital platform. This enables independent agents to start producing with carriers within hours rather than months. Integrating directly with carriers, First Connect reduces administrative complexity and accelerates the quoting and policy-binding process.
The platform includes a marketplace with over 100 carriers and MGAs, offering agents an easy way to discover and access those carriers and review relevant information such as lines of business written, state coverage, underwriting guides, and commission rates. And a tool that helps agents identify carriers with an appetite for specific risks, offering a simplified path to quoting and binding policies. The company automated most of the verification process by implementing an AI-powered solution for validating Errors & Omissions (E&O) documents, reducing compliance approval times for new agents from weeks to just minutes, and allowing agents to start selling policies almost instantly.
KEY QUOTES:
“The insurance market is increasingly volatile, with agents and carriers grappling with fragmented systems and changing underwriting processes. First Connect’s commitment to addressing the unique needs of independent agents caught our attention. The Company’s strong unit economics, impressive growth trajectory, and ambitious, talented team impressed us.”
- Sarah Kim, Partner, Centana Growth Partners
“Our partnership with Centana marks an exciting phase of growth for First Connect, as we continue to harness the significant potential of the U.S independent agent market. This investment allows us to double down on what matters most to our agents and carrier partners, which is strengthening our product and elevating our service potential. By expanding our team across product, engineering, sales, and account management, we’re well positioned to scale to meet the increasing demand for our solution.”
- Aviad Pinkovezky, CEO, First Connect
“Independent agents are the heart of the insurance industry – but need better tools to access the right carriers, grow their books and place risks seamlessly. We also know from conversation with Pruven LPs including Prudential, WTW, Lincoln, TIAA, Mutual of Omaha and others that carriers need better tools to engage and manage this vital partner channel. First Connect is revolutionizing insurance distribution with a tech-native platform and we at Pruven Capital are excited to partner with the team in their mission to help agencies turbocharge their growth.”
- Ramneek Gupta, Managing Partner of Pruven Capital
