Nava Benefits Acquires Innovative Boutique Benefits Firm to Further Strengthen Its Tri-State Presence

NEW YORK, June 8, 2022 – Nava Benefits, a modern healthcare benefits brokerage leveraging technology and benefits innovation to tackle the rising costs of healthcare, today announced the acquisition of i2, a healthcare benefits consulting company. This marks Nava's first acquisition, which brings additional benefits expertise to the team, strengthens Nava's position in the Northeast, and accelerates the firm's ability to help smaller employers in the tri-state region control rising healthcare costs.

While large companies have the resources and bandwidth to find, evaluate, and implement better health benefits and modern solutions at lower costs, SMBs are cost- and resource-constrained. SMBs saw cost-per-employee increases of 9.6% in 2021, as compared to 5% for larger companies. Nava's technology and consulting offering level the playing field by reducing costs and exposing small-to-midsize businesses to a wide array of modern benefits, including primary care, mental health, fertility, and adoption assistance, and a host of other offerings.

"We're thrilled to join forces with i2, a brokerage that not only shares an ethos anchored around innovation, but a team and client base that is very closely aligned with Nava's," said Joseph Donovan, Chief Revenue Officer at Nava. "I2's track record of innovation combined with a client base that embraces modern approaches to benefits design made this a strong cultural and strategic fit."

Launched in 2008, i2 is a New York-based boutique employer benefits brokerage firm that offers cost reduction strategies specifically tailored to the needs of smaller employers. In response to rising healthcare costs with no end in sight, i2 delivers plan recommendations that drive bottom-line savings without impacting plan quality, service, or employee experience.

"Nava and i2 are philosophically aligned around helping smaller employers lower their healthcare costs while delivering better outcomes for their employees," said Derek Chylinski, Senior Advisor at i2. "Nava is leveraging technology and benefits innovation to not only drive savings for the employer, but to also deliver a better healthcare experience for employees. I'm excited to bring Nava's modern offering to i2's clients and the broader tri-state market."

Nava's acquisition of i2 is the latest milestone in the company's mission to bring high-quality, affordable healthcare to all Americans. In June, the firm closed a $40M Series B fund which capped off a quarter of tremendous growth for the company. In Q1, the company launched its Nava Benefits Search Engine, enabling all employers to search for unfiltered information and transparent pricing from more than 600 providers across 28 benefit categories such as fertility services, tuition assistance, and mindfulness and wellness. Nava continues to evolve its technology offering and further deepen its base of knowledge and experience with multiple strategic hires and client wins.

‍

About Nava Benefits

Nava Benefits is a modern benefits brokerage on a mission to bring high-quality, affordable healthcare to all Americans, starting with the 49% who receive insurance through their employers. With the Nava Benefits Search Engine, employers can discover and learn about 600+ providers across 28 benefits categories, backed by reviews from fellow HR professionals. By partnering with healthcare and benefits advisors from the country's largest companies, Nava packages their insights, tools, and best practices into a scalable, unified service offering that has helped smaller employers save 8-22% on their benefits plans. Nava is also a recipient of Inc's Best Workplaces 2022. For more information, visit www.navabenefits.com.