Chelsea Avondale Announces Investment Round Led by MSD Partners

Additional investors include American Family Ventures, among others

HAMILTON, Bermuda and ONTARIO, Canada, May 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Chelsea Avondale ("Chelsea Avondale" or the "Company"), a home insurance group that develops and deploys scientific risk models to underwrite personal property risk with precision and speed, today announced that it has secured Series C funding from a group of leading investors. The funding round was led by MSD Partners, L.P. and also included American Family Ventures, among others.

The new funding will be used to support the continued growth of Chelsea Avondale's Canadian homeowners insurance portfolio, which is underwritten through the Company's wholly owned subsidiary, Max Insurance, and distributed through Max's network of independent brokers. It will also be used to support Chelsea Avondale's strategic international expansion. In conjunction with the completion of the investment round, Dan Bitar, Managing Director and co-head of MSD Growth, has joined the Chelsea Avondale board of directors.

At a time when many brokers and policyholders are struggling to find affordable capacity, Chelsea Avondale's unique approach to personal property risk offers prices and coverage to many policyholders that traditional carriers cannot match. By applying its granular and scientific approach to underwriting, the Company is able to provide a highly efficient quote, bind, and policy administration process for brokers and policyholders.

"We are thrilled to partner with the Chelsea Avondale team to support the continued expansion of their innovative and differentiated approach to property insurance," said Dan Bitar, Managing Director and Co-Head of MSD Growth. "Chelsea Avondale's passion for precision pricing and risk management, coupled with a strong track record of exceptional underwriting results, creates a tremendous runway for future growth. This investment is emblematic of MSD Growth's strategy of serving as a flexible, long-term partner to growth businesses with proven business models and large market opportunities."

"Chelsea Avondale's culture is driven by tenured risk managers and scientists with decades of reinsurance experience," said Kyle Beatty, Managing Director of American Family Ventures. "Their knowledge and expertise in dynamically modelling and managing all catastrophic and non-catastrophic risk is truly impressive. Their proprietary approaches enable the company to delineate risk with exceptional precision, particularly for homes exposed to wildfires and flooding. Further, this team has fully rebuilt its insurance operating system, thereby removing unnecessary operating expense and creating a step-change in user experience for both agents and policy holders."

"MSD Partners and American Family Ventures are industry leaders in supporting transformational ideas in insurance. We are fortunate to have such partners that deeply understand the value of our approach and are committed to helping us advance the development and application of risk science in the property insurance market," said Nilesh Vasani, CEO of Chelsea Avondale.

About Chelsea Avondale

Chelsea Avondale has developed Skynet, a precision risk technology for property & casualty insurance, by going back to the scientific principles that cause insurance claims. The first implementation of Skynet was completed in Chelsea Avondale's wholly owned insurance company in Canada – Max Insurance. Chelsea Avondale also partners with industry leaders to proliferate the global impact of scientific underwriting.

Learn more at chelseaavondale.com

About Max Insurance

Max Insurance is based out of Ontario, Canada, and offers homeowners, tenants, landlords and condo insurance in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario through its network of independent brokers.

Max's focus is on providing personal property insurance at a fair price. Whether it's a home, cottage, condo, or apartment, Max believes its duty is to provide policyholders with protection for what matters most.

Learn more at maxinsurance.ca

About MSD Partners

MSD Partners focuses on maximizing long-term capital appreciation across three core areas of investing expertise – Credit, Real Estate, and Growth Equity. It is an affiliate of BDT & MSD Partners, a merchant bank with an advisory and investment platform built to serve the distinct needs of business owners and strategic, long-term investors. Since 2010, BDT & MSD Partners' affiliated funds have deployed more than $50 billion across their investment strategies. For more information, visit www.bdtmsd.com

About American Family Ventures

American Family Ventures is the corporate VC arm of American Family Insurance. American Family's pioneering attitude and decades of success allow the firm the opportunity to invest in seed through growth stage companies that are redefining the future of the insurance industry. AFV aims to help create category-leading companies through minority equity positions, active partnership and collaboration, an extensive Insurtech network, and a comprehensive platform of value-add programs.

To learn more, visit https://www.amfamventures.com/

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Media Contacts:
Chelsea Avondale / Max Insurance
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (246) 832-3341

MSD PartnersSara Evans / Matthew GlasserEmail: [email protected]
Phone: (312) 529-6548 / (312) 385-2883

American Family Ventures
Email: [email protected]

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