Garentii receives 1.9 million euros

The insurtech offers insurance as a substitute for rental deposits. Shortly before the market launch, there is now a seed financing.

Shortly before its market launch, Garentii has closed a seed financing round of 1.9 million euros. In the process, the Munich-based startup has received venture capital from reinsurer Greenlight Re, Elkstone Ventures and a German private investor.

Founded last year by Michael Hazoume, Dennis Stern and Vitaliy Zhovtyuk, the startup aims to revolutionize security deposit payments. Normally, tenants have to pay a deposit of three months' rent for their apartment. In most cases, this is a one-time payment, which then sits as collateral in the landlord's account and cannot be used for other purposes. This is where Garentii comes in: the start-up has developed a digital deposit insurance and management tool. The tool replaces cash deposits free of charge, simplifies cash deposit management and insures potential damages for landlords. Tenants pay only three euros a month instead of three months' rent as a one-time payment.

"The security deposit replacement insurance model has already proven itself in the U.S. market and is perfectly replicable in other high-tenant markets," said Simon Burton, managing director of invested reinsurer Greenlight Re. "By developing its technology platform to process and manage security deposit policies, Garentii will make renting an apartment as simple and frictionless as possible for both the landlord and the tenant."

The capital from the funding round will be used to further grow the company after its official market launch. The startup's platform is scheduled to launch in Germany this month. Garentii would then like to expand to other countries in the current year.