AwanTunai and Munich Re Supporting Micro-SMEs after the Cianjur Earthquake in November 2022
Jakarta – Despite contributing more than 60% of Indonesia’s GDP, micro-, small- and medium enterprise (micro-SME) entrepreneurs in Indonesia continue to face challenges accessing insurance coverage. To empower our micro-SME partners, AwanTunai provides entrepreneurs access to insurance against unforeseen financial risks that could impact their businesses and livelihoods. Backed by Munich Re, our insurance programme shields micro-SMEs from the significant financial impact of accidental death and severe earthquakes to support their quick and smooth recovery.
As a nation located in a complex tectonic zone, Indonesia is prone to earthquakes which can cause the loss of lives, extensive property damage and disruptions to livelihoods. Yet, many micro-SMEs remain uninsured or underinsured due to cost concerns and accessibility to suitable earthquake insurance coverage that can meet their needs. In light of these challenges, AwanTunai has partnered Munich Re, one of the world’s leading providers of insu
rance solutions, to provide micro-SMEs relief after severe earthquakes.
“We aim to develop further cutting-edge financial inclusion products to serve the vast underserved Southeast Asian mar
ket, starting with a microinsurance product on AwanTunai’s financial technology platform. This innovation will address the existing barriers that prevent micro SMEs from accessing insurance. We look forward to working with institutional partners to develop and distribute next-generation digital innovations for the region,” stated Dino Setiawan, Co-Founder, and CEO of AwanTunai.
This financial innovation provides micro-SMEs a safety net not only for their businesses but also their families. This benefit was evident following the severe earthquake that struck near Cianjur in West Java on 21 November 2022. Given that many micro-SMEs in Indonesia are also family-owned, our insurance programme helped entrepreneurs and their families tide through challenging times without the additional financial stress arising from the impact of the earthquake. This enabled affected micro-SMEs to focus on rebuilding their businesses within weeks. Without insurance, an earthquake of such magnitude would have set our micro-SME partners back by a few years.
“The persistent underinsurance of small businesses has always been a challenge to the long-term sustainable development of Southeast Asia. Our partnership with AwanTunai reflects Munich Re’s purpose by closing the protection gap and fostering financial inclusion. We are pleased to see that our collaboration supported micro-SMEs who were disproportionately affected by last year’s unfortunate earthquake in Cianjur, and to help them focus on rebuilding their lives and businesses,” stated Dennis Tay, Senior Insurance Solutions Manager.
The joint project combines AwanTunai’s
established platform and reputation among Singapore and Indonesian micro-SMEs with Munich Re’s extensive global experience. As of March 2023, AwanTunai has worked with over 300 supplier partners to help traditional wholesalers digitize and finance their operations and served over 40,000 micro merchant users. With AwanTunai’s vast base of data and supply chain networks, the project looks to develop cutting-edge risk models and technologies to provide microinsurance protection that meets the needs of micro-SMEs. As a largely untapped market with extensive potential, the microinsurance product presents significant opportunities for AwanTunai.
Micro-SMEs can purchase their inventory online via the AwanToko mobile app and access affordable financing through a simple process of regi
stering with their national identity cards (KTP).
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About AwanTunai (Holding company of Windy Hill Ltd.)
AwanTunai is a business solutions platform for traditional offline wholesalers and merchants, digitising inventory ordering, payment, and customer management, with its licensed fintech platform providing embedded inventory purchase financing to FMCG suppliers and micro grocery merchants. The AwanToko micro merchant mobile app orders and finances inventory purchases digitally. The platform enables Indonesia's unbanked micro-SMEs to access low-cost institutional working capital by facilitating AwanTunai’s partner banks to fund these micro-SMEs. Founded by Dino Setiawan, Rama Notowidigdo, and Windy Natriavi. For more information, visit www.awantunai.com.