Alan Buys Senegal’s Tanel to Enter West Africa Insurance

In Short

• Alan has acquired Senegalese digital health firm Tanel to enter Africa.
• The deal gives Alan operations in Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire, where the health insurance market is growing at about 10% a year.
• The companies are targeting one million members across Africa by 2030.

What Happened

Alan is entering Africa through the acquisition of Tanel Health, a Senegal-based digital health and health insurance platform. The move gives Alan an established base in a West African health insurance market estimated at nearly €600 million.

Instead of launching from scratch, Alan plans to build on Tanel’s existing customers, healthcare provider partnerships, and experience with local regulation. Regulation here means the rules set by governments and insurance authorities for pricing, licensing, claims, and how patient data is handled.

Tanel currently serves about 70,000 members from more than 400 companies. It also has a network of over 1,200 pharmacies and healthcare providers across Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire.

Alan said it will introduce more of its technology and prevention-focused services through Tanel’s platform. Prevention-focused services typically include tools that help members avoid illness, like check-ups, coaching, and screening reminders. The company also plans to roll out more digital healthcare and telehealth, which is remote care through phone or video.

Tanel founders Mouhamed Ndoye and Makhtar Diop will remain in charge of operations and will lead Alan’s broader African expansion. Tanel’s employees are expected to be retained.

The transaction also provides an exit for some early investors, including Ventures Platform and AAIC Investment.

Why It Matters

This is a rare, visible healthtech exit in Francophone West Africa, a region where acquisitions are less common than funding rounds. It also shows how international insurers are choosing to enter African markets by acquiring local platforms with distribution, provider networks, and compliance knowledge already in place.

For Alan, the bet is speed. Tanel’s employer base and provider network can shorten the time needed to launch products and process claims. The harder part may be scaling beyond Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire into new countries, where insurance rules, healthcare systems, and coverage levels differ.

If the one million member target for 2030 holds, the combined company could become a meaningful player in employer-led health insurance and digital care across West and East Africa.