Naked Insurance

What Naked Insurance does

Naked Insurance is a South African insurtech founded in 2016 by three actuaries (Alex Thomson, Sumarie Greybe, Ernest North) that distributes short-term insurance — car, home contents, building, single item, and pet cover — exclusively through direct digital channels: its website, iOS/Android/Huawei mobile apps, and a native ChatGPT app. The platform is built around an AI-driven live underwriting and rating engine that produces binding quotes in under 90 seconds, supported by two proprietary conversational agents: Rose (quoting/onboarding) and Jade (claims handling). In May 2026 the company became the first insurer globally to issue binding car insurance quotes inside ChatGPT by exposing its live rating engine as an External Conversational Interface.

The company operates a distinctive mutual-style business model: Naked Financial Technology (Pty) Ltd (FSP 48822) acts as an intermediary that charges a flat access fee while the bulk of customer premiums flow into a communal claims pool underwritten by Hollard Specialist Insurance (FSP 25511). Any underwriting surplus remaining at year-end is donated to customer-chosen charitable causes through the "Naked Difference" programme — Naked donates none of that surplus as profit. Revenue therefore scales with policy count and premium volume rather than profit-taking, with publicly disclosed entry pricing of R180/month for car, R43/month for home contents, R15/month for single items, and R55–R320/month for pet insurance tiers.

Go-to-market is product-led growth, with no broker or call-centre channel: customers self-serve from quote through claims in-app. Naked has raised approximately $69.5M across six rounds (2017 seed through a R700M / ~$38M Series B2 extension in early 2025, the largest African insurtech round on record), led by Naspers Foundry (Series A), IFC (Series B), and joined by BlueOrchard, DEG, Yellowwoods, and Hollard. The company is headquartered in Johannesburg with an additional Cape Town presence, employs 101–250 staff, and currently operates only in South Africa, with African expansion and a first-mover AI-conversational channel as its primary forward growth vectors.

Name

Naked Insurance

Legal name

Naked Financial Technology (Pty) Ltd

Website

https://naked.insure

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Naked Insurance is a South African insurtech founded in 2016 that sells car, home, building, single-item, and pet insurance through AI-powered mobile apps and a world-first ChatGPT-native binding quote interface, underwriting policies via Hollard and donating premium surpluses to charity under its fixed-fee Naked Difference model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

NAICS

Agencies, Brokerages, and Other Insurance Related Activities (5242), Direct Property and Casualty Insurance Carriers (524126)

SIC

Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411)

akta.pro primary industry

Standalone Hospital Indemnity Insurance (FSAIAKAB)

Keywords

• Digital insurance platform
• Short-term insurance
• Insurtech solutions
• AI-powered underwriting
• Mobile insurance app

Headquarters

HQ city

Johannesburg

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Insurance Premium Revenue: Naked collects insurance premiums from policyholders. Unlike traditional insurers, Naked operates a fixed-percentage fee model: it charges a flat fee (access fee) to cover running costs, with the remainder of premiums flowing into a communal claims pool. Any surplus remaining at year-end is donated to customer-chosen charitable causes (the Naked Difference) rather than retained as profit.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Naked Insurance is a South African digital insurer that sells car, home contents, building, single item (including phone), and pet insurance directly to consumers through a fully self-serve mobile app and website. It uses an AI-powered live underwriting and rating engine (with bots Rose and Jade) to generate binding quotes in roughly 90 seconds and to process claims without paperwork or call-centre interaction. The business model charges a fixed access fee while remaining premiums flow into a communal claims pool, with any year-end surplus donated to customer-chosen causes under the Naked Difference programme.

Product overview

Naked Insurance is a South African digital insurtech platform offering a portfolio of short-term insurance products through a mobile-first platform. The core offering includes car insurance, home contents insurance, building insurance, single item insurance (including phone insurance), and pet insurance. All products are managed through the Naked App with AI-powered automation via Rose (quoting bot) and Jade (claims bot). The company recently launched a ChatGPT integration enabling conversational insurance quoting. Pet insurance is offered in three tiers (Basic, Nice, Plus) with customizable annual limits and excess options. The unique business model charges a flat fee with claims paid from a separate pool, and surplus funds are donated to customer-chosen causes through the 'Naked Difference' program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Car Insurance Comprehensive car insurance coverage for South African motorists, offered with instant online quotes, customizable excess, and app-based policy management. Starting from R180 per month, with binding quotes generated in roughly 90 seconds via the app or website.
• Home Contents Insurance Insurance coverage for household contents and personal belongings inside the home, available from R43 per month with app-based policy management and claims processing.
• Building Insurance Insurance for permanent structures on a property, including homes, garages, walls, paving, and fixed features, covering events such as fire, storms, and burst geysers. Includes a building value calculator tool.
• Single Item Insurance Standalone insurance for individual valuables such as smartphones, laptops, cameras, and other gadgets, with worldwide coverage. Starting from R15 per month.
• Phone Insurance Comprehensive cell phone coverage including theft, loss, accidental damage, and worldwide protection, covering screen repairs, replacement, and water damage.
• Pet Insurance Dog and cat insurance covering accidents, illness, routine care, and physiotherapy, with any-vet coverage, no sub-limits, and quick claims processing. Plans start from R55 per month for Basic accident-only cover, with customisable annual limits from R15,000 to R120,000.
• Naked App Mobile application that serves as Naked's primary customer interface for instant quote generation, policy purchase, excess adjustment, policy customisation, claims tracking, and customer support. Available on iOS App Store, Google Play, and Huawei AppGallery.
• Naked ChatGPT App (Binding Quotes) Native app within the ChatGPT platform that delivers final, binding car insurance quotes by integrating directly with Naked's live underwriting and rating engine, allowing users to answer underwriting questions conversationally and adjust policy variables for real-time pricing.

Quantifiable outcome

• Surplus premium donation to customer-chosen causes
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability7 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• OpenAIcoreTechnology or Integration · 1 May 2026Naked developed and deployed a native app within ChatGPT that provides final, binding car insurance quotes by integrating directly with Naked's live underwriting and rating engine. This positions Naked as the first company globally to offer binding insurance quotes through an AI assistant platform.
• Hollard Specialist Insurance LimitedflagshipOthers · 1 January 2026Hollard is the underwriter behind all Naked policies — an authorised Financial Services Provider (FSP 25511) that provides the actual insurance backing. Naked Financial Technology acts as an intermediary (FSP 48822) distributing Hollard-underwritten short-term insurance products. Hollard is also a direct investor in Naked.
• Oscars Arc WOOF ProjectminorOthersOne of nine charitable causes supported by the Naked Difference programme. Oscars Arc's mission is to inspire pet adoption and save shelter dogs' lives. Supported by surplus premium donations from Naked customers who choose the cause.
• GreenpopminorOthersEnvironmental NGO focused on urban greening and forest restoration in South Africa. One of nine causes supported by the Naked Difference programme through surplus premium donations.
• Door of HopeminorOthersChild welfare organisation supported through the Naked Difference programme.
• U-turnminorOthersHomeless services organisation supported through the Naked Difference programme.
• The Kolisi FoundationminorOthersSports and community development foundation supported through the Naked Difference programme.
• Life Choices AcademyminorOthersYouth development academy supported through the Naked Difference programme.
• ChristelHouse SAminorOthersEducational non-profit supported through the Naked Difference programme.
• Good Morning AngelsminorOthersAngel investor network supporting individuals and causes, beneficiary of the Naked Difference programme.
• TEARSminorOthersAnimal welfare organisation supported through the Naked Difference programme.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Lemonade: US-listed insurtech offering renters, homeowners, car, pet and life insurance through a mobile-first, AI-driven platform with a famously similar 'Giveback' charitable-surplus model. The closest global analogue to Naked's fixed-fee-plus-donation structure and AI-bot-led customer experience.
• Many Pets (formerly Bought By Many): UK-headquartered insurtech specialising in pet insurance with a digital-first subscription model, app-based policy management, and tiered plans analogous to Naked's pet Basic/Nice/Plus structure. Closest direct peer on the pet-insurance vertical.
• Root Insurance: US insurtech that uses AI and telematics-based driving data to price auto insurance through a mobile app. Comparable to Naked in its AI-native underwriting engine, app-led self-serve flow, and focus on the personal auto line.
• Trov: On-demand single-item and micro-duration insurance platform with an API-first, app-based architecture. Directly comparable to Naked's single-item/phone-insurance product line and its emphasis on short, flexible policy terms.
• Laka: UK/EU peer-to-peer collective insurance model where surplus premiums are returned to the community rather than retained as profit. Closely aligned with Naked's communal-pool, charity-donation model and digital-first distribution.

Broad incumbents

• Hollard Insurance Group: South Africa's largest privately-owned short-term and life insurer; Naked's underwriting partner and an investor. Relevant as the broad incumbent whose balance sheet, regulatory licences, and broker network underpin Naked's ability to issue policies at all.
• Santam: Largest short-term insurer in South Africa by gross written premium, with a broad personal and commercial lines portfolio. Relevant as the dominant incumbent that Naked is directly displacing in personal lines.
• Old Mutual Insure: South African insurance group with a sizeable short-term personal-lines business. Comparable as a broad incumbent competing for the same car, home, and contents customers that Naked targets through its digital platform.

Regional players

• Discovery Insure: South African insurer with a tech-enabled, behaviourally-incentivised insurance product (Vitality-linked telematics). Comparable as a regional incumbent that has competed with Naked on app-led, data-driven personal-lines insurance in the same SA market.

Emerging players

• Branch Insurance: US insurtech bundling home, auto, and renters coverage through a mobile-first, AI-assisted experience. Comparable as an emerging insurtech building a multi-product personal-lines bundle on top of partner carriers, similar to Naked's Hollard-backed model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/nakedcover_sa
• Xx.com/Naked_insurance

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds5 records

Investors7 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 Naked Insurance