By Chris Munro

April 2 - (The Insurer) - Former Socius and Swiss Re executive Chris McKechnie has launched a new MGA called Vivere Partners, which has raised $7.5 million through a Series A funding round led by General Catalyst, Pathlight Ventures and Greenlight Re.

The Laguna Beach, California-based startup said the funding will be used to accelerate its strategic expansion, which includes recruitment of underwriting talent along with the development of technology infrastructure.

“The new capital positions the company to rapidly build a business focused on niche insurance solutions, strong distribution partnerships and underwriting discipline,” Vivere said.

In Vivere’s marketing materials, the company said it is committed to transforming the industry by developing tailored, technology-enabled insurance solutions that enhance operational efficiency and drive profitability in niche markets.

Vivere stated it is “recruiting top-tier underwriting leaders and acquiring insurance businesses, including program administrators, program managers, MGAs, and MGUs to achieve this purpose."

In announcing the Series A funding, Vivere said it is focused on solving two persistent challenges: the misalignment across the insurance value chain along with a lack of transparency.

“At Vivere, we aim to tackle these issues head-on with a foundation of strong underwriting, enhanced by data and technology,” said McKechnie, Vivere’s founder and CEO.

“Our philosophy – Underwriting Driven, Tech Enabled – ensures our solutions are grounded in industry expertise and powered by innovation to stay ahead in a constantly evolving market,” the executive added.

According to his LinkedIn profile, McKechnie left wholesale broker and MGA Socius in July 2023, having spent just over 18 months at the company.

McKechnie had joined Socius early 2022 having previously worked for Trisara Capital Partners and Relation Insurance Services.

Alongside stints at Antarctica Capital and Aquiline Capital Partners, McKechnie’s career also includes almost eight years at Swiss Re, latterly as managing director and head principal investments. He left Swiss Re in 2013.

Working alongside McKechnie at Vivere is engineering leader Sachith Gullapalli, a partnership the company said brings together “a rare blend of industry depth and engineering innovation."

“In a data-powered future, we see technology as a force multiplier within the underwriting process where analytics and innovation empower underwriters to make smarter and faster decisions,” said Gullapalli, who serves the company as chief technology officer.

“This will result in a highly collaborative synergy between human expertise and AI capabilities,” he added.