Financial technology platform Intuit has agreed to acquire technology from Zendrive, a US-based provider of mobility risk intelligence.
The terms of the deal were not revealed.
Through the acquisition, Intuit aims to enable its Credit Karma to expedite usage-based auto insurance product Karma Drive and help members save on auto insurance.
As part of the deal, some Zendrive employees, including its CEO Dennis Ellis and co-founder and chief technology officer Pankaj Risbood will join Credit Karma. This is expected to result in the accelerated innovation and adoption of Karma Drive.
Ellis said: “Zendrive’s mission is to make roads safer with data and analytics, and we pride ourselves on delivering experiences that help create awareness for safe driving habits.
“Intuit’s customer-obsessed culture is a perfect match for our team. Together we will democratize access to fair insurance for all Americans based on their driving habits, not their financial situation.”
Credit Karma has collaborated with Zendrive since the inception of Karma Drive over three years ago. As of now, Karma Drive has enrolled more than six million members in the programme.
The members of Credit Karma have the option to participate in a trial offering real-time driving feedback and the ability to view potential discounts before purchasing a policy, all facilitated through telematics.
Established in 2007, Credit Karma helps its members with their financial goals, including identity monitoring, applying for credit cards, shopping for loans, auto insurance, savings accounts and checking accounts through MVB Bank.
Credit Karma president Joe Kauffman said: “Karma Drive gives our members access to personalized discount offers based on safe driving habits, without first having to purchase a policy.
“With Zendrive’s technology and expertise, we strive to make usage-based auto insurance more accessible than ever and bring more transparency, fairness, and accuracy to consumer auto insurance pricing, while providing insight into their driving behaviours.”
The transaction is expected to be completed in Q4 2024.
For the transaction, Latham & Watkins served as legal adviser to Intuit. Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian was the legal adviser while Evercore acted as financial adviser to Zendrive.
