Gravie Health Insurance Marketplace Raises $10.5 Million Series A From Aberdare Ventures

Today Gravie, a health insurance marketplace competing with the likes of Zenefits, has closed a $10.5 million Series A round led by Aberdare Ventures, with participation from exiting investor FirstMark Capital. This comes six months after Gravie closed a $2.6 million seed round, bringing the company’s total funding to more than $13 million.

Gravie is a health insurance marketplace that is free to use for individuals and employers, making the sprawling map of healthcare, including the private market and public exchange, more simple to navigate.

“Once the provisions of the Affordable Care Act went into effect, employer sponsored group insurance will not make sense for many employers or their employees. At best, group coverage offers them no particular advantage over the individual market,” said cofounder and CEO Abir Sen. “In fact, in many parts of the country premiums in the individual market are actually lower than a similar employer-based group plan.”

He also added that employers may be doing their employees a disservice by offering a group plan, as it may prevent eligible employees from receiving tax credts, which could be of greater value than the employer’s actual contribution to the group plan.

For these reasons, Gravie launched last year and is looking to disrupt the market.

Not only does Gravie help users shop around for the proper insurance plan, it helps them understand all the details of that plan, from coverage options to the organization of bills and statements, to dealing with denied claims, etc.

All of this, in the end, to help people understand which option is better for them in the long-run. Gravie is of the belief that users on an employer-sponsored plan will be better off in the individual market.

The company makes money by taking a commission off of each sale through its website.

With over 70 employers signed on to the platform, representing over 8,000 individuals, Gravie hopes the funding will help the company expand to more users.

As part of the deal, Aberdare Ventures partner Mohit Kaushal, MD, will join the Board of Directors.

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