Starfish Specialty raises $3 million in latest funding round

National program administrator Starfish Specialty Insurance has announced that it has completed a second funding round, raising $2.5 million in new equity capital and $500,000 in debt to fund its continued expansion.

The round was led by Starfish Specialty’s founders and supported by others including industry veteran Brad Emmons, who has been named a senior advisor to the company.

Starfish was launched last year by Jeremy Hitzig, Tom Lane, Margaret McBurney, Michael Thabet, Brooks Chase and James Flynn. In late 2021, the company unveiled its first program, a builder’s risk program distributed as an embedded product in partnership with a private lender, backed by A-rated carrier Summit Specialty.

Starfish has already exceeded 1,500 policies written since its launch. The company is set to launch a second program in the coming weeks.

“We are very excited to welcome our new investor partners,” Hitzig said. “The additional funding positions us to add several new programs, invest in additional underwriting talent and continue to expand the capabilities of our technology platform.”

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Hitzig also expressed his satisfaction that Emmons, co-founder and former CEO of Orchid Insurance, had joined the Starfish team.

“Brad brings a wealth of experience and perspective on how to build a best-in-class program business and we are fortunate to have him supporting us,” he said.

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