What Descartes Underwriting does

Descartes Underwriting is a Paris-based insurtech managing general agent (MGA) founded in 2018/2019 that specializes in parametric insurance for climate, cyber, and emerging risks. The company works through a network of more than 300 corporate insurance brokers to deliver index-based coverage to large corporations, government entities, and renewable energy operators across more than 60 countries, supported by 20+ offices in 10 countries. It operates through two complementary entities: Descartes Underwriting (the global MGA designing parametric products backed by A-rated capacity) and Descartes Insurance (an ACPR-licensed EU full-stack insurer), alongside licensed subsidiaries in the US (surplus lines), Singapore (MAS reinsurance broker), Australia (AFSL), and the UK (Temporary Permission Regime intermediary). The company is led by CEO and co-founder Tanguy Touffut, employs a workforce that includes 150+ risk modeling and science experts, and is privately held following a $120M Series B led by Highland Europe and Eurazeo in January 2022 with subsequent growth investment from Battery Ventures in June 2025.

The core technology platform combines AI/ML-powered parametric triggers with earth observation data from 80+ external sources — including NASA, NOAA, ECMWF, Planet Labs, IoT sensors, weather stations, and Vaisala — to define transparent, measurable insurance triggers that automatically pay claims when predefined conditions are met. The product portfolio spans more than 35 distinct parametric solutions covering hurricane/cyclone (Cat-in-a-Circle), wildfire (Fire-in-a-Circle), PGA- and Shindo-scale earthquake, wind-at-location typhoon, satellite-detected tornado for solar farms, radar-based hail, river gauge and sensor-based flood, drought, bushfire, extreme temperature stress, cyber shutdown, and parametric reinsurance. The platform reduces claims cycles from 15-36 days to 1-3 days and reduces basis risk by 15-25% versus static actuarial models through continuous ML-based trigger calibration. Descartes is organized horizontally across industries including agriculture, construction, data centers, energy and renewables, financial institutions, hospitality, manufacturing, public sector, real estate, retail, and solar farms, with a regional matrix spanning North America, Latin America, Europe, UK, Asia, Japan, Australia/NZ, and Middle East/Africa.

Descartes generates revenue primarily through insurance premiums as an MGA, retaining a portion of gross written premium while ceding risk to reinsurance markets and a parametric ILS fund established with Generali and Twelve Capital. Gross written premium exceeded $250M in 2025, with management targeting $500M within three years and total deployed capacity above $15B. Distribution is broker-mediated (Willis/WTW, Lockton, and 300+ other firms) supplemented by direct enterprise sales for large accounts, with minimum premiums typically around $50,000 and multi-year contracts. Recent strategic actions include securing Lloyd's coverholder status via OAK Global's Syndicate 2843 in June 2026, launching parametric natural catastrophe coverage for US data centers with limits up to $140M per policy in January 2026, and building out the renewable energy product line with NextPower for solar wind coverage and Planet Labs for satellite-based tornado detection.

Name

Descartes Underwriting

Legal name

Descartes Underwriting SAS

Website

https://descartesunderwriting.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Descartes Underwriting is a Paris-based insurtech MGA providing AI-powered parametric insurance for climate, cyber, and emerging risks to large corporations, governments, and renewable energy operators across 60+ countries via a network of 300+ brokers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Parametric Insurance / Specialty Insurance

NAICS

Insurance Carriers (5241), Reinsurance Carriers (52413), Insurance Carriers and Related Activities (524)

SIC

Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411), Fire, Marine & Casualty Insurance (6331), Insurance Carriers, Nec (6399)

akta.pro primary industry

Insurance Program Administration & MGA/MGU Services (FSAEADAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Underwriting Decision Support & Rules Engines (FSAOAIAD), Catastrophe Excess-of-Loss (XoL) Reinsurance (FSAOACAH), Stop-Loss & Reinsurance Administration (Captive/Level-Funded Support) (HLAEALAB)

Keywords

• Parametric insurance
• Climate risk transfer
• Natural catastrophe coverage
• Insurtech solutions
• Weather index insurance

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Insurance Premiums: Primary revenue stream from underwriting parametric insurance policies. Acts as a Managing General Agent (MGA) collecting premiums from policyholders and retaining a portion while transferring risk to reinsurance markets and ILS funds.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Descartes Underwriting is a managing general agent (MGA) that designs and distributes parametric insurance products for climate, cyber, and emerging risks. Coverage triggers are based on predefined objective parameters (e.g., wind speed, ground acceleration, river gauge levels, satellite-detected wildfire perimeters) rather than traditional loss adjustment, enabling rapid, transparent payouts within days of a triggering event. The company operates globally through two entities: Descartes Underwriting (MGA) and Descartes Insurance (EU-licensed full-stack insurer), serving large corporations, public entities, and renewable energy operators across 60+ countries.

Product overview

Descartes Underwriting operates through two complementary entities: Descartes Underwriting (global MGA designing parametric products backed by A+ rated insurers) and Descartes Insurance (EU-licensed full-stack insurer). The core offering is a parametric insurance platform that provides index-based payouts triggered by predefined objective parameters such as weather events or natural catastrophes. The product portfolio spans multiple peril categories including: Cat-in-a-Circle (hurricane/cyclone), Fire-in-a-Circle (wildfire), PGA-based Earthquake, Wind-at-Location (typhoon), Tornado (satellite-based), Hail (radar-based), Flood (river gauge/sensor-based), Drought, Bushfire, Climate Stress, and Cyber coverage. Solutions are organized by region (North America, Latin America, Europe, UK, Asia, Japan, Australia/NZ, Middle East/Africa) and industry (Agriculture, Construction, Data Centers, Energy/Renewables, Financial Institutions, Hospitality, Manufacturing, Public Sector, Real Estate, Retail, Solar Farms). The platform also includes parametric reinsurance offerings and captive insurance solutions. All products leverage advanced modeling with 30-40 years of historical data, AI/machine learning, and real-time data from 80+ sources including satellites, IoT sensors, and weather stations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Parametric Insurance Platform Primary parametric insurance platform offering index-based coverage that pays out based on predefined triggers such as weather events or natural catastrophes, providing fast, transparent protection without requiring on-site loss assessment. Designed for large corporations, public entities, and risk carriers via broker distribution.
• Hurricane / Cat-in-a-Circle Parametric Insurance

Quantifiable outcome

• Claims paid within days of triggering event (vs months for traditional insurance)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability8 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• OAK Global / Syndicate 2843coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 16 June 2026Lloyd's coverholder agreement with OAK Global's Syndicate 2843 providing capacity and market access for global parametric risk placement through the Lloyd's marketplace.
• NextPowercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 June 2026Solar wind protection partnership providing parametric coverage specifically designed for solar energy assets against wind-related damage and business interruption.
• Willis (WTW business)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 11 May 2026Distribution partnership for parametric flood solutions through Willis Towers Watson's broker network, with case studies including Royal Windsor Racecourse.
• HDI Global SEcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 July 2025Japan parametric earthquake insurance partnership providing specialized coverage for Japanese commercial entities against seismic events using parametric triggers.
• GeneralicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerILS fund partnership and parametric flood insurance collaboration with major global insurer Generali for risk transfer and product co-development.
• LocktonminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance broker placement for the Bad Bunny $23.7M parametric event coverage, distributing Descartes' parametric products to entertainment clients.
• ICMIFminorOthersMember of the International Cooperative and Mutual Insurance Federation, supporting the global mutual and cooperative insurance community.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Broad incumbents

• Munich Re: Munich Re is the world's largest reinsurer with extensive natural catastrophe and parametric capabilities (e.g., Munich Re/HSB Sensor Insured). Broad incumbent that overlaps with Descartes on parametric cat, IoT-based triggers, and corporate broker distribution.
• Swiss Re: Swiss Re is a major global reinsurer with a sizeable natural catastrophe portfolio and growing parametric offerings. Broad incumbent comparable to Descartes through its corporate and government climate risk transfer solutions and capacity provision.
• Beazley: Beazley is a specialty insurer that has built out its own data-driven and parametric capabilities across specialty lines. Broad incumbent comparable to Descartes on broker-led specialty distribution and parametric offerings for complex risks.
• AXA Climate: AXA Climate is the climate risk and adaptation arm of AXA, offering parametric insurance and climate advisory services to corporates and public entities. Broad incumbent overlapping with Descartes on parametric products and broker distribution channels.

Direct peers

• Skyline Partners: Skyline Partners is a specialty parametric reinsurance underwriting platform that designs index-based covers for climate and weather risks. Directly comparable to Descartes on parametric reinsurance product, broker distribution, and capital partner model.
• Arbol: Arbol is a parametric climate risk marketplace offering index-based contracts for weather and climate perils. Direct peer to Descartes given near-identical parametric, data-driven climate risk transfer model and similar enterprise/government customer focus.
• Kettle: Kettle is a reinsurer using AI and satellite data to underwrite parametric climate risk. Direct peer combining ML-driven catastrophe modeling with reinsurance capacity, operating in a similar space to Descartes' parametric reinsurance offerings.
• FloodFlash: FloodFlash offers parametric flood insurance that pays out based on measured flood depth at the insured property. Direct peer in parametric natural catastrophe covers with sensor-based triggers, serving commercial property and enterprise customers.

Others

• Allianz: Allianz is a global insurer and asset manager with growing parametric and climate risk transfer offerings (and is a former employer of Descartes' CFO Sébastien Bardy). Relevant as a strategic partner and incumbent in the same enterprise climate risk space.

Emerging players

• Sensalytx: Sensalytx is an emerging player offering AI-driven wildfire risk analytics and parametric wildfire insurance products. Comparable to Descartes' Fire-in-a-Circle and Wildfire HOA parametric solutions, focused on a specific peril where Descartes is also active.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/DescartesUWing
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/descartesunderwriting

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors8 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Descartes Underwriting