(Image source: Carpe Data homepage.)
Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. (THL, Boston), a private equity firm investing in middle market growth companies, has made a strategic growth investment in Carpe Data, a provider of innovative emerging and alternative data products for the insurance industry. The investment makes THL the majority shareholder of Carpe Data. The company’s founders and management will continue to hold a meaningful stake, along with a group of existing strategic investors.
Edward Shahnasarian, Director, THL.
Headquartered in Santa Barbara, CA, Carpe Data uses proprietary algorithms and AI to transform emerging and alternative data into predictive and actionable insights for insurance carriers across the globe. Carpe Data’s predictive data enables insurers to automate claims decisions and improve outcomes across the insurance lifecycle. THL’s investment will be used to support continued innovation across Carpe Data’s proprietary data platform, as well as capture opportunities for the company to expand and strengthen its position as the next-generation data company for insurance, according to a statement from the companies.
“As leading investors in the insurance and automation space for over 20 years, we have witnessed the growing demand among carriers for automated alternative data and predictive analytics to improve performance and gain a competitive edge in all key workflows,” comments Edward Shahnasarian, Director, THL. “With a strong track record of innovation and growth, Carpe Data is meeting this demand by creating a new market for alternative data to unlock automation and improve outcomes across the insurance lifecycle. We are excited to partner with this innovative and industry leading team to accelerate their vision.”
Max Drucker, CEO, Carpe Data.
“Since forming Carpe Data in 2016, we have rapidly grown and cultivated a blue-chip customer base, and we believe THL is the ideal partner for the next phase of our journey,” comments Max Drucker, Founder and CEO, Carpe Data. “The depth of their expertise in the insurance technology and automation sectors, combined with their experience scaling high-growth technology businesses, makes THL well suited to help us execute on our strategic roadmap for continued growth. With this investment, we have a unique opportunity to further expand across core segments, introduce new products and use cases, and enter adjacent markets.”
This marks the tenth investment for THL’s Automation Fund, the industry’s first fund dedicated to investing in automation-related businesses. This also marks the eighth investment for THL’s flagship fund, Thomas H. Lee Equity Fund IX, which invests behind Identified Sector Opportunities (“ISOs”) across three industry verticals, including Financial Technology & Services.
THL’s Ganesh Rao, Managing Director and Head of Financial Technology & Services, Gary DeGruttola, Executive Advisor, Edward Shahnasarian, Director, and Timothy Ferris, Vice President, will join Max Drucker, CEO, and Geoff Andrews, COO, on the Carpe Data board of directors as part of the deal.
Cooley LLP served as legal counsel and William Blair served as financial advisor to Carpe Data. Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal counsel and Raymond James & Associates served as financial advisor to THL.
The Hartford Taps Carpe Data to Speed Small Business Underwriting
Unqork Incorporates Carpe Data Resources to Better Evaluate Commercial Risk