The e-commerce giant, Amazon, is reportedly in the final stages of closing an investment in the online insurance startup, Acko, reports suggest. Amazon will invest Rs 100 crore in Acko and additionally co-create financial products with the startup. It will also act as a distributor of the products.

Sources familiar with the matter have also stated that Amazon is the second company Acko approached for investment. The company had previously been in talks with Flipkart; however the discussions had fallen through. It was thereafter that the company turned to Amazon and commenced discussions. “They were engaged with both Amazon and Flipkart for the past few months for an investment. But with Amazon putting in a term sheet, the deal is likely to close soon with them,” a source was quoted saying. The investment comes after Acko General Insurance raised funding of Rs 200 crore in May 2017.

Earlier in 2017, Acko Technologies, the parent company of Acko General Insurance, received an in-principle clearance from the regulator to launch the subsidiary. The other backers of the Mumbai-based start-up are prominent investors including Catamaran Ventures owned by Narayan Murthy, Kris Gopalakrishnan, Hemendra Kothari of DSP Blackrock, and venture funds Accel Partners and SAIF Partners.

(Picture courtesy: financialtribune.com)