Daniel Clere

Nenad Valverde has built a reputation as a highly respected executive, widely recognized for his transformative leadership and clear strategic vision in scaling venture capital-backed startups and scale-ups. With over 12 years of experience, Valverde has repeatedly demonstrated his ability to guide companies from their earliest seed funding stages to the highly sought-after unicorn status. His expertise spans every stage of growth, from pre-seed through Series D, and his leadership has been central to driving hyper-growth, expanding global operations, and establishing sustainable profitability.

At wefox, Valverde played a decisive role in the company’s rise from a young startup to a unicorn, operating at the forefront of the digital insurance sector. Serving as both a Member of the Executive Board and Managing Director, he helped shape the company’s long-term strategy, streamline operations, and oversee critical decisions that positioned wefox as a leading player in an intensely competitive market. His leadership was not only pivotal in scaling the business but also in ensuring that operational excellence kept pace with rapid international expansion.

One of Valverde’s most notable contributions was his work advancing wefox’s affinity (embedded) strategy, a model that ultimately became a cornerstone of the company’s growth. Under his leadership, this approach was successfully rolled out across multiple countries, broadening the company’s reach and solidifying its position in diverse markets. The embedded model proved instrumental in deepening customer relationships, accelerating scalability, and driving overall business performance.

In his role as Chief Strategic Partnership Officer, Valverde turned his focus to forging large-scale, high-impact partnerships. His foresight and ability to identify key growth opportunities led to transformative collaborations with brokers, Managing General Agents (MGAs), fintechs, insurtechs, retailers, and digital platforms. His negotiation skills were central to driving mergers and acquisitions worth hundreds of millions of euros. These acquisitions were carefully integrated to maximize synergies and reinforce wefox’s market dominance.

A defining advantage for Valverde has been his fluency in six languages, a skill that has greatly enhanced his effectiveness in international leadership. This linguistic versatility has allowed him to quickly grasp cultural nuances and engage directly with C-level executives across different regions, strengthening global business development efforts and driving expansion initiatives.

Under his stewardship, wefox grew from a modest startup into a global insurtech leader, with annual turnover soaring from zero to CHF 700 million. Leading a team of more than 300 employees, Valverde emphasized collaboration, cross-functional alignment, and a shared vision for growth. His leadership style helped the company navigate the challenges of rapid expansion while maintaining focus on long-term sustainability.

Valverde also integrated technological innovation with human-centered leadership, fostering a collaborative and positive company culture while driving operational success. His ability to balance high-level strategy with effective execution allowed wefox to remain competitive and adaptable in an industry that evolves at a relentless pace.

By early 2021, Valverde had recognized the transformative potential of artificial intelligence and its ability to reshape business operations—particularly in insurance. Acting quickly, he began implementing AI-driven solutions to enhance process automation, streamline workflows, and generate actionable insights. These efforts boosted operational efficiency, improved forecasting of market trends, and enabled more informed decision-making. The early integration of AI gave wefox and its partners a decisive competitive edge, refining processes, improving customer experiences, and guiding strategic decisions in a sector where digital innovation is crucial to long-term success.

Valverde’s tenure at wefox is a clear example of his rare ability to take a company from its earliest funding stages to unicorn status. His success in driving hyper-growth, building strategic alliances, and managing complex acquisitions has helped establish wefox as a global leader in insurtech. His multilingual skills, vision, and operational expertise have left a lasting impact not only on the company but also on the wider digital insurance landscape and global business community.

Beyond his leadership role, Valverde has emerged as a passionate investor and entrepreneur, deeply committed to supporting the startup ecosystem. He has invested in numerous early-stage companies, identifying their potential and providing resources to help them grow. His involvement goes beyond financial backing: Valverde actively mentors young entrepreneurs, offering his experience and guidance to help them navigate the challenges of scaling their businesses.

Through his advisory work and investments, he continues to play an active role in shaping the next generation of business leaders. His focus on innovation and sustainable growth reflects his belief in empowering startups to not only compete but thrive in today’s challenging market environment.

Daniel Clere
Journalist | Writer | Startups & Technology