_# From Ultra-Cycling to InsurTech: The Story of Sandro Matter and vlot

In the world of startups, founders often draw inspiration from their personal experiences. For Sandro Matter, a former Swiss vice-champion in ultra-cycling, the discipline and strategic thinking required for endurance sports provided a unique foundation for his entrepreneurial journey. As the co-founder and COO of vlot, a Zurich-based InsurTech company, he is now applying that same long-term vision to revolutionize the life insurance industry.

A Personal Pain Point Sparks a Business Idea

The story of vlot begins not in a corporate boardroom, but with a personal realization. Sandro Matter, together with his co-founder Daniel Schmidheiny, recognized a significant problem in the financial services industry: the process of understanding and purchasing life insurance was overly complex, opaque, and often intimidating for the average person. They saw an opportunity to leverage technology to simplify this process, making it more accessible and transparent for everyone.

In 2017, they founded vlot with a clear mission: to empower families and individuals to make financially responsible decisions. Their vision was to create a platform that could quickly and accurately analyze a person’s financial situation, identify potential income and savings gaps, and recommend the right insurance coverage to protect against life’s uncertainties.

Building the “Backbone” of Modern Life Insurance

vlot is not an insurance company itself, but a B2B SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) provider that partners with insurance carriers, banks, and other financial institutions. Their platform acts as the digital “backbone” for these organizations, enabling them to offer their customers a modern, intuitive, and data-driven life insurance experience. By transforming complex financial data into practical insights, vlot helps its partners to better advise their clients and drive financial wellbeing.

The company’s technology is designed to be both powerful and user-friendly. It uses advanced analytics to provide a holistic view of a person’s financial situation, taking into account factors like income, expenses, assets, and existing insurance coverage. The platform can then simulate the financial impact of events like death or disability, and recommend personalized solutions to close any identified gaps. This not only helps individuals and families to better understand their financial risks, but also enables insurance carriers to offer more tailored and relevant products.

A Story of Growth and Strategic Partnerships

Under Sandro Matter’s leadership as COO, vlot has grown from a two-person startup into a recognized player in the European InsurTech scene. The company has successfully raised over $3 million in funding from a mix of Swiss and international investors, including SixThirty Ventures, Spicehaus Partners, and Plug and Play Tech Center. This capital has enabled vlot to expand its product offering, ramp up its sales activities, and grow its team of ambitious, multicultural professionals.

One of the key milestones in vlot’s journey has been its partnership with Generali, one of the world’s leading insurance groups. In 2023, Generali Switzerland selected vlot to be the technology backbone for its new digital life insurance tool. This partnership is a strong validation of vlot’s technology and its potential to transform the life insurance industry from the inside out. By working with established players like Generali, vlot is able to bring its innovative solutions to a wider audience and have a greater impact on the financial wellbeing of individuals and families across Europe.

The Future of Financial Wellbeing

The story of Sandro Matter and vlot is a powerful example of how a clear vision, a strong team, and a relentless focus on solving a real-world problem can lead to entrepreneurial success. By combining their expertise in finance, technology, and business strategy, the founders of vlot have built a company that is not only financially successful, but also has a positive social impact. As they continue to expand their partnerships and develop new features, vlot is well-positioned to become a leading force in the global InsurTech market, and to make a lasting contribution to the financial wellbeing of people everywhere.