Apollo’s Ibott to evolve with fast-growing global sharing economy

The global sharing economy is potentially the “biggest expanding area for insurance in the next 20 years”, according to Matt Newman, head of casualty at Apollo and lead for the company’s Ibott brand.

Newman explained that Ibott, which stands for ‘insuring businesses of tomorrow, today’, is the insurer’s new special purpose arrangement (SPA) designed to tap into this growth.

“We think revenues from the sharing economy will be in excess of $300 billion by 2025. In 2014 it was estimated at about $15 billion,” he said.

“Whether it is clicking on an app to book a taxi, choosing accommodation-sharing rather than a hotel, or hiring an e-bike, the way everyone interacts in the world has changed significantly in the last few years.

“That is why we set up a dedicated SPA with Lloyd’s, which launched on January 1, 2019. It’s the first step towards a new syndicate, proving the concept and building a track record.”

Newman agreed that in any new area of business there are always challenges, so Ibott has appointed a dedicated sharing economy team with its own actuaries. Newman believes the company is one of very few to have done that.
He explained that it was important to have a knowledgeable and innovative team because Ibott has a broad mix of clients, from startups to the other end of the scale, including some of the largest companies in the world in the sharing economy space which have disrupted traditional industries.

“These larger firms are sophisticated and knowledgeable with a lot of data backing up their business plans,” he added.

“Using the Lloyd’s licensing gives us an innovative and useful platform for sharing economy businesses that would like a global footprint.”

In addition to accommodation-sharing, ride-sharing, asset-sharing and vehicle leasing, there are further growth areas such as the micromobility sector. This includes e-bikes and e-scooters, which are growing in popularity around the world.

Newman explained that Apollo, through Ibott, can build on various coverages for clients into a single policy.

“The knowledge we have developed in the sector for the last few years enables us to have a lot of discussions about where we have been able to help clients in the past. It’s much more of a partnership, where we evolve alongside our clients,” he concluded.