Funding will accelerate Bestow’s disruptive life insurance-focused enterprise software platform growth and expansion into annuities market
Today, we are proud to announce a $30 million investment in Bestow, Inc. as part of a $120 million Series D funding round, co-led by Smith Point Capital and Goldman Sachs. This investment marks a significant milestone for founders Melbourne O'Banion and Jonathan Abelmann, as well as the entire Bestow team, whose vision and execution continue to transform the life insurance industry.
The life insurance industry has been notoriously slow to embrace technology, despite customer demands. While other sectors within the insurance and financial industry have undergone significant modernizations, if you've ever purchased life insurance, the experience today is strikingly similar to buying a policy 30 years ago. It's been a decade since we have seen innovation in the market when insurance upstart Lemonade demonstrated the power of instant online insurance with their five-minute renters' policies. Even prior to that, in the early- to mid-2000s Wealthfront was transforming investment management by offering itself as your automated investment advisor. New applicants are still forced to navigate long and outdated processes that can take weeks or months to complete.
Bestow has identified and tackled this mission-critical challenge that has plagued the industry for decades. What makes Bestow truly exceptional is how they've positioned themselves at the epicenter of insurance operations. Rather than developing peripheral tools, they've built core infrastructure that enables life insurers to create and launch entirely new products and go-to-market strategies. In an industry that has seen virtually no meaningful innovation, Bestow stands out as a true pioneer.
For a relatively young company, Bestow has built an impressive roster of enterprise customers—no small feat in an industry that’s skeptical of taking big bets on startups. The company has secured partnerships with some of the insurance industry's most respected names, including Nationwide, Transamerica, USAA, and Sammons Financial Group. This demonstrates the company's ability to build trust in an exceptionally challenging environment. Unlike other insurance technology platforms, Bestow offers a comprehensive vertical software solution purpose-built for the entire life insurance value chain.
The Series D round caps a period of extraordinary growth:
- Anticipated profitability in 2026
- Tripled revenue in 2024
- 10x growth over two years
- 100% customer retention rate
- 245% year-over-year increase in transaction volume
This investment will fuel Bestow's development of new products and services for life insurance enterprises and accelerate the launch of innovative offerings targeting the annuities market, set for debut in early 2026.
We believe Bestow's innovative approach to insurance technology, combined with its strong leadership, reflects not only their business agility and intelligence in pivoting their model effectively, but also represents a transformative leap forward for the entire sector.
We couldn't be more excited to partner with Melbourne, Jonathan, and the Bestow team in their next stage of growth as they continue to modernize an industry ripe for innovation.
Learn more: Read Bestow’s Series D press release here.
