Metromile, a San Francisco-based auto insurance startup, has sealed a deal to go public by merging with blank-check firm INSU Acquisition Corp. II, whereas the merger is expected to hand over up to $294 million in cash to Metromile for its operations. 

In addition to funding already secured by INSU Acquisition Corp. II., Metromile has gotten a $160 million investment commitment from investors including venture capital firms Social Capital and New Enterprise Associates as well as the entrepreneur Mark Cuban. Its merger with INSU is expected to deliver an initial market value of $1.3 billion when Metromile begins trading on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange. 

Metromile is an auto insurance app that provides a way for customers to pay for insurance on a per-mile basis, measured by a device plugged into a car. The San Francisco-based company was founded in 2011 and is backed by nearly $300 million in venture funding from investors including Index Ventures, Future Fund, China Pacific Insurance, New Enterprise Associates, and G Squared.

Metromile is among a cohort of startups that are looking to disrupt the $250+ billion U.S. auto insurance market by offering better ways for consumers to be billed for insurance. One other notable member of this cohort is Root Insurance, which held a public offering that raised more than $700 million just last month.

Metromile was notably co-founded by David Friedberg, a serial entrepreneur who founded and sold a previous company, The Climate Corporation, to Monsanto (now Bayer) for $1.1 billion. Apparently, he’s clinched another big exit to his name with Metromile, which expects its merger to be completed in the first quarter of next year.

Photo: Metromile Co-Founder David Friedberg| by Thomas Hawk is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0

Share this...

Facebook

Pinterest

Twitter

Linkedin

Whatsapp

Email

Print