YuLife, a UK-based insurtech startup, launched its operations in South Africa today.
YuLife’s product offerings include a wellbeing app which harnesses the latest trends in behavioural science and game mechanics to encourage employees to make proactive lifestyle changes, while prioritising prevention by de-risking individuals through healthy activities.
The YuLife app enables employees to complete everyday wellness activities, such as walking, meditation, and cycling, in order to earn YuCoin, YuLife’s virtual wellbeing currency. Members can then use their YuCoin to buy vouchers for groceries, data, fuel, clothing and more from leading brands, or to improve the world through donating meals, planting trees, or cleaning the ocean.
By incentivising healthy living, YuLife claims to provide employers with a way to simultaneously boost retention rates, improve employees’ standard of living, and safeguard their loved ones’ financial future.
“There has been a big shift toward health and wellbeing in the workplace, with more and more companies adding new initiatives and resources to their employee benefits packages. YuLife is launching in South Africa to offer companies an easy way to provide extra protection – we’re looking forward to providing South African businesses and employees tangible value on an everyday basis in an accessible, engaging, and deliverable manner,” said Jaco Oosthuizen, YuLife co-founder and managing director of YuLife South Africa.
YuLife recently expanded to the US and claims to have seen more than 5x growth in premiums year-on-year. In July 2022, the insurtech startup raised a $120M Series C led by Dai-ichi Life with participation from T. Rowe Price, bringing the company’s total funding to $206M.
According to recent data, the gross written premium of the South Africa life insurance market was R598.4 billion (~$40.5 billion) in 2021 and is expected to achieve a CAGR of more than 5% from 2021 to 2026.
“South Africa has the second highest insurance penetration globally, making it a perfect market for YuLife to expand into and showcase its innovative approach to insurance,” concluded Oosthuizen.
