D
Descartes Underwriting
Descartes Underwriting is an insurtech company that specializes in climate risk modeling and data-driven risk transfer
About Descartes Underwriting
Descartes Underwriting is a startup that specializes in parametric insurance, a new generation of insurance that provides protection against climate risks. The company works with brokers globally to safeguard their corporate clients and governments from natural disasters, weather-related incidents, and emerging risks. Unlike conventional insurance, which depends on lengthy loss adjustment procedures, parametric insurance pays out when a predefined event, such as a flood, cyclone, or earthquake, occurs. This type of insurance is more affordable and offers precise protection without the need for on-the-ground loss adjustment.
Read full description
Descartes Underwriting operates in a unique way, leveraging machine learning and advanced algorithms to analyze vast amounts of data from various sources, including the Internet of Things (IoT), satellite imagery, stationary sensors, radar, and third-party data. This data-driven approach allows the company to model the underlying phenomena directly, capturing trends and potential climate change impacts to better protect their clients.
The company was founded by experienced insurers and data scientists and offers its parametric insurance solutions in over 60 countries. It underwrites and innovates against natural catastrophes across all trade sectors, providing insurance against floods, earthquakes, cyclones, hurricanes, hail, and wildfires. The policies are written on A-rated securities and the company partners with top-tier (re)insurers. Through these partnerships, Descartes Underwriting can deploy up to $200M in capacity per contract.
In summary, Descartes Underwriting is a forward-thinking insurance startup that uses data and technology to provide affordable and precise protection against climate risks.
At a glance
- Status
- Operational
- Founded
- 2018
- Headquarters
- Paris, France
- Employees
- 260
- Open positions
- 11
- Dealroom signal
- 86.6/100
- Industry
- Fintech
- Sub-industry
- Insurance
- Sector
- Fintech, Risk Management, Weather Forecasting, Remote Sensing, Sustainable Development Goals, Space Tech, Insurtech Product and Price, Insurtech Underwriting
- Technology
- Big Data, Deep Tech, IoT InternetOfThings
- Business model
- SaaS
- Client focus
- b2b
Knowledge graph
More headlines
Funding history
Company financing events and reported valuations.
| Deal type | Date | Amount | Valuation | Investors | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GROWTH EQUITY VCOther financing | Jun 2025 | $0 | — | Battery Ventures | ↗ |
| SERIES BOther financing | Jan 2022 | $120M | $480M | Seaya · BlackFin Capital Partners · FCP Innovacion SP · Mundi Ventures | ↗ |
Growth signals
Latest recorded traffic for Descartes Underwriting is 8.6K monthly website visits, down 42.7% over the last three months. Descartes Underwriting's team grew 2.8% over the past year.
Open positions
Similar companies
Company identity and context are open; selected comparison metrics preview what is available on the platform.
Investments and acquisitions
Recent portfolio relationships for companies that also act as investors or acquirers.
Investors
From Dealroom's funding and investor records, grouped by the round each investor first entered.
Seed1 investor entered at this stage
BlackFin Capital Partners
Series A8 investors entered at this stage
Serena
Cathay Innovation
Highland Europe
Seaya
FCP Innovacion SP
Mundi Ventures
Eurazeo
Gaelle Olivier
Series B and later1 investor entered at this stage
Other known investors1 additional known investor
ESA BIC Nord France
Source: Dealroom Talent Intelligence.
Global footprint
team presence
Market sentiment
An AI-synthesised read of the highest-engagement posts about Descartes Underwriting on X, ranked by likes and reposts, corporate channels excluded.
Reading the room on X — pulling top posts and synthesizing themes…
Source: X recent search ranked by engagement (likes + retweets) · Synthesis by Claude · Cached for 1 hour
See Descartes Underwriting’s full profile on Dealroom
Request a free trial to see the complete deal history, financials, people graph and growth signals.
Takes under a minute. Already use Dealroom? Log in.