- Companies
- Bestow
Last Bestow valuation
$8B
Series D · May 2025
Last Bestow funding round
$70M
Series D · May 2025
Cumulative funding Bestow raised
$208M
across 5 funding rounds
Key investors in Bestow
New Enterprise Associates
Core Innovation Capital
Morpheus Ventures
Valar Ventures
8VC
Abstract
About Bestow
Bestow is an Austin-headquartered life insurance technology provider partnering with carriers like North American Company. The platform enables instant policy issuance via app-based underwriting using data analytics, serving US customers with term life coverage up to $1.5 million.
Founded
2016
HQ
Website
Status
Privately held
Customer focus
B2C
Revenue model
Product sales, Subscription
Valuation
$8B (May 2025)
Bestow Valuation
Bestow is currently valued at $8B, based on its Series D in May 2025.
The $70M round was led by Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Smith Point Capital, with participation from AllianceBernstein and Decades Holdings.
Bestow's valuation has grown 16x from $490M at its secondary sale in May 2025 to $8B in May 2025, across 2 priced rounds.
Bestow valuation by funding round
| Date | Stage | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| May 2025 | Series D | $8B |
| May 2025 | Secondary | $490M |
Bestow Funding History
Bestow has raised a total of $208M across 5 funding rounds, plus 1 secondary share sale.
Bestow's first fundraising round was a $3M seed round in August 2017. The most recent completed round was a $70M Series D in May 2025.
Bestow funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2025 | Series D | Goldman Sachs Asset Management (lead); Smith Point Capital (lead); AllianceBernstein; Decades Holdings | $70M | $8B | Bestow Inc. is a Dallas-based insurtech company that provides end-to-end software solutions for life insurers, enabling them to modernize and digitize their operations. Founded in 2017 by Melbourne O'Banion and Jonathan Abelmann, the company initially operated as a direct-to-consumer life insurance provider with no-exam underwriting capabilities. In 2024, Bestow sold its insurance carrier and consumer business to Sammons Financial Group and pivoted to focus entirely on enterprise software and services for life insurance companies, helping them become more digital and efficient. Its revenue model is enterprise SaaS with performance-based fees, with the bulk of revenue coming from usage fees. On May 13, 2025, Bestow closed a $120 million Series D funding round, co-led by Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives and Smith Point Capital. The round was oversubscribed and included both primary and secondary investments. The company also secured a $50 million credit facility from TriplePoint Capital. Post-money valuation reached $8 billion, representing a 31% markup from the previous Series C round in December 2020, when the company raised $70 million at approximately $4 billion valuation. Bestow demonstrated strong operational metrics heading into the Series D. The company tripled its revenue in 2024 and achieved 10x revenue growth over the two-year period from 2023 to 2025. It recorded a 245% year-over-year increase in transaction volume and maintained a 100% customer retention rate. The company partners with major insurers including Nationwide, Transamerica, USAA, and Sammons Financial Group, marking an unprecedented enterprise customer roster for a young company in the traditionally risk-averse insurance industry. The investment underscores strong market validation for Bestow's mission-critical enterprise platform. Goldman Sachs' Ashwin Gupta joined Bestow's board of directors, and Keith Block of Smith Point Capital emphasized that Bestow is fundamentally transforming how insurers create and deliver products at the core of their business operations. With the new capital, Bestow plans to accelerate product development, expand its platform offerings in life and annuities, and scale its enterprise partnerships to make life insurance more accessible to millions of families. |
| May 2025 | Secondary | - | $45M | $490M | - |
| Dec 2020 | Series C | Hedosophia (lead); Breyer Capital; Sammons Financial Group; New Enterprise Associates; Core Innovation Capital; Morpheus Ventures; Valar Ventures | $70M | - | Bestow is a digital life insurance platform founded by Jonathan Abelmann and Melbourne O'Banion that enables customers to apply for term life insurance policies in as little as 5 minutes without requiring a medical exam. The company operates as both a digital agency and, following its acquisition of Centurion Life Insurance Company in 2021, as a licensed carrier in multiple states. In December 2020, Bestow announced a Series C funding round of $70 million, bringing total funding to $145 million at that time. The round was led by Hedosophia and included investors such as Breyer Capital, Core Innovation Capital, Morpheus Ventures, New Enterprise Associates, Sammons Financial Group, and Valar Ventures. The company achieved significant traction with policy sales up more than 450% year-over-year and had written over $10 billion in life insurance coverage by the end of 2020. Following the Series C round, Bestow announced a Series D of $120 million comprising $75 million in primary capital and $45 million in secondary. |
| Apr 2020 | Series B | Valar Ventures (lead); Sammons Financial Group; New Enterprise Associates; Core Innovation Capital; Morpheus Ventures | $50M | - | Bestow is a Dallas-based insurtech company revolutionizing life insurance with a fully digital platform that enables customers to purchase policies in minutes without medical exams, using algorithmic underwriting and data-driven solutions. Launched around 2017, it targets underserved markets, with 85% of applicants being new to life insurance, and focuses on simple, instant coverage products. In February 2020, Bestow closed a $50 million Series B funding round led by Valar Ventures, with participation from existing investors New Enterprise Associates, Morpheus Ventures, Core Innovation Capital, and new investor Sammons Financial Group. This round contributed to the company's rapid funding trajectory, followed by a $70 million Series C in December 2020 from Breyer Capital, Valar Ventures, NEA, Core Innovation Ventures, Morpheus Ventures, and Sammons Financial, bringing total funding to $145 million at that point. The Series B supported team growth in Dallas and Austin and innovation in the regulated insurance sector. Around the 2020 funding periods, Bestow reported sales growth exceeding 450% year-over-year. The company achieved milestones like acquiring Centurion Life Insurance to become a national carrier, launching its Protect API, and expanding into fintech and agent channels. Bestow continued scaling, raising a $120 million Series D in 2025 led by Goldman Sachs and Smith Point Capital, with total equity over $300 million, mentioning 3x ARR growth in 2024. It serves enterprise customers like Nationwide and USAA via a SaaS model with usage fees, employing around 167 people and eyeing international expansion. |
| May 2018 | Series A | Valar Ventures (lead); 8VC; New Enterprise Associates; Core Innovation Capital; Morpheus Ventures; Abstract | $15M | - | Bestow, a digital life insurance platform based in Dallas, Texas, raised $15 million in its Series A funding round on May 21, 2018, led by Valar Ventures with participation from New Enterprise Associates, Core Innovation Capital, 8VC, and Morpheus Ventures. This brought total equity funding to $18 million following a prior $2.5 million seed round. The company uses algorithmic underwriting and data-driven solutions to provide quick life insurance access without medical exams, measuring risk in minutes. Bestow aimed to reshape the life insurance industry by simplifying a traditionally frustrating process into a seamless experience. At the time, it was live in Texas and Utah, planning a national launch. Investors highlighted Bestow's innovation in one of the most regulated sectors, focusing on expanding insurability and democratizing access for consumers. |
| Aug 2017 | Seed | New Enterprise Associates (lead); 8VC; Core Innovation Capital; Morpheus Ventures; Abstract | $3M | - | Bestow, founded in 2016, closed a $2.5 million seed round on August 29, 2017, led by New Enterprise Associates with participation from Core Innovation Capital, Morpheus Ventures, and 8VC. This marked the company's first institutional round, bringing total financing since inception to $3.1 million. Bestow offers a technology-driven approach to life insurance, aiming to simplify access and provide seamless user experiences through full-stack solutions and analytics. The funding supports Bestow's efforts to build a best-in-class team and revolutionize financial preparation via life insurance. Investors highlighted the high traditional barriers to life insurance and Bestow's innovative use of technology for affordable protection from trusted sources. |
Who has invested in Bestow?
13 investors have backed Bestow across its funding rounds, including New Enterprise Associates, Core Innovation Capital, Morpheus Ventures, Valar Ventures, 8VC and Abstract.
Lead investors include Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Smith Point Capital, Hedosophia, Valar Ventures and New Enterprise Associates.
Bestow Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Lead | Aug 2017 | ||
| 4 | Participant | Aug 2017 | ||
| 4 | Participant | Aug 2017 | ||
| 3 | Lead | May 2018 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Apr 2020 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Aug 2017 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Aug 2017 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Dec 2020 | ||
| 1 | Lead | May 2025 | ||
| 1 | Participant | May 2025 | ||
| 1 | Lead | Dec 2020 | ||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all 13 Bestow investors. Start Free Trial | ||||
Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples
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Start Free TrialAcquisitions by Bestow
Bestow has acquired 1 company to date.
Last acquisition by Bestow was on December 1st 2020. Bestow acquired Centurion Life Insurance for undisclosed valuation.
Latest Acquisitions by Bestow
| Description | - |
| HQ Country | |
| HQ City | - |
| Deal Date | 1 Dec 2020 |
| Valuation | undisclosed |
| EV/Revenue | |
| EV/EBITDA | |
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Bestow acquisitions and their M&A valuation multiples. Start Free Trial | |
Bestow Competitors
Bestow competitors include listed companies like Hightech Payment Systems and Abaxx Technologies, and private ones like Comulate, Behavox, Ocrolus and Payactiv.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private | $10M | - | $240M | 24.0x | ||
| Publicly listed | $156M | $29M | $496M | 3.2x | ||
| Private | $26M | - | $500M | 19.2x | ||
| Private | $20M | - | $500M | 25.0x | ||
| Private | - | - | $500M | - | ||
| Publicly listed | $749K | ($28M) | $503M | 136.9x |
Bestow Public Comps
Bestow is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Hightech Payment Systems, Abaxx Technologies, Qualco Group, Ray Sigorta, Linkage Software, AMERISAFE, American Integrity, JinXianDai Information, Leonteq and Brilliance Technology.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $156M | $29M | 3.3x | 3.2x | 17.6x | 18.1x | |||
| $749K | ($28M) | 600.9x | 136.9x | (16.1x) | (10.0x) | |||
| $248M | $40M | 2.1x | 1.9x | 13.0x | 9.6x | |||
| $652M | $111M | 0.0x | - | 0.0x | - | |||
| $157M | $24M | 2.7x | 4.2x | 17.7x | 14.2x | |||
| $317M | $60M | 1.3x | 1.3x | 7.1x | - | |||
| $276M | $117M | 1.0x | 0.3x | 2.3x | - | |||
| $46M | ($10M) | 10.1x | - | (47.7x) | - | |||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Bestow competitors and their valuation data. Start Free Trial | ||||||||
Common questions about Bestow
| When was Bestow founded? | Bestow was founded in 2016. |
| Where is Bestow headquartered? | Bestow is headquartered in Dallas, TX, United States. |
| Is Bestow publicly listed? | No, Bestow is a private, VC-backed company. |
| What is Bestow's valuation? | Bestow was last valued at $8B in its Series D in May 2025. |
| How much funding has Bestow raised? | Bestow has raised $208M across 5 funding rounds. |
| What was Bestow's last funding round? | Bestow's last funding round was a $70M Series D in May 2025, led by Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Smith Point Capital. |
| Who are Bestow's investors? | Bestow's investors include New Enterprise Associates, Core Innovation Capital, Morpheus Ventures, Valar Ventures, Sammons Financial Group, 8VC, Abstract, Breyer Capital, Smith Point Capital, AllianceBernstein and 3 others. |
| Which companies are comparable to Bestow? | Companies comparable to Bestow include Comulate, Hightech Payment Systems, Behavox, Ocrolus, Payactiv and Abaxx Technologies. |
| How many companies has Bestow acquired? | Bestow has acquired 1 company, including Centurion Life Insurance. |
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