Marshmallow

Alexander and Oliver Kent-Braham are twin British entrepreneurs who co-founded Marshmallow in 2017. The twins, who had earlier working lives in finance and tech, recognised a gap in the UK car-insurance market: migrants and newcomers to the country were often charged inflated premiums because traditional underwriting didn’t properly assess their risk.

Having launched Marshmallow from modest beginnings— even working out of the lobby of a gym to keep costs low, their strategy combined data-science, mobile-first technology and a focus on underserved segments to build a differentiated business. Early fundraising successes and rapid growth followed: by 2021, they achieved unicorn status with a valuation of around $1.25bn.

In their roles, the brothers divided responsibilities: Alexander focused on product, tech and internal operations; Oliver took the outward-facing work such as partnerships, investor relations and growth strategy. Under their combined leadership, Marshmallow has insured hundreds of thousands of drivers, developed its own pricing and fraud models, and aimed to expand beyond car insurance to broader financial-services offerings for migrants and global mobile customers.