Synopsis
Digital insurer Acko is gearing up for a confidential IPO, aiming to raise approximately $250 million and seeking a valuation between $2-2.5 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. Appointing top investment banks, the company plans to file its prospectus by June. Acko, founded by Varun Dua, offers direct-to-consumer insurance and has significant investor backing.Listen to this article in summarized format
The Bengaluru-based insurer is likely to file its draft prospectus by the end of June this year, the people cited earlier said, adding that the proposed IPO could value the company between $2 billion and $2.5 billion. The last known valuation of Acko was around $1.4 billion.
The company has appointed Morgan Stanley, Kotak Securities and ICICI Securities as book-running lead managers for it, they said.
Acko declined to comment.
The company offers general, health and life insurance products directly to consumers, bypassing traditional agents and intermediaries. Acko was founded by Varun Dua, who previously built insurance distributor Coverfox.
The insurer received its regulatory licence in 2017 and commenced operations the following year. Its investor base includes General Atlantic, Multiples PE, Accel Partners, Elevation Capital, and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, which have collectively deployed over $583 million into the company.
“In the current market conditions, startups are having to take a knock on the valuation to pull off an IPO successfully, now it remains to be seen if Acko can go public at the same valuation at GoDigit two years back,” said a founder of a fintech startup, requesting not to be named.
In FY26, Acko underwrote motor insurance premiums worth Rs 1,186 crore and health insurance premiums worth Rs 1,235 crore.
For FY25, the company reported total revenue of Rs 2,887 crore and a net loss of Rs 424 crore, as per filings with the ministry of corporate affairs. Although still loss-making, Acko has sharply reduced its deficit — down from Rs 670 crore in FY24.
Acko joins other large fintech startups which are planning a public listing later this year. While PhonePe stepped back from the process earlier this year, Razorpay is working on internal processes to be IPO-ready over the coming months. Digital lending startup Kissht has filed its final prospectus with market regulator Sebi, while Fibe, Moneyview and Kreditbee are in different stages of IPO filings.
Within the insurance sector, an IPO will make Acko the third new-age venture-backed startup after GoDigit General Insurance and insurance distributor Policybazaar to go public.
GoDigit General Insurance listed on the bourses in May 2024. It had a market capitalisation of around Rs 25,000 crore (about $2.6 billion) at that time, and as of close on Monday, its market capitalisation stood at Rs 29,574 crore ($3.1 billion).
