PRESS RELEASE: Willed secures strategic investment from Seven West Media

Willed (https://www.willed.com.au), the innovative online will-writing and end-of-life planning platform, announces a strategic investment by one of Australia’s leading media companies, Seven West Media (ASX: SWM), to further accelerate growth over the next 12 to 24 months.

Highlights

Strategic investment of $3.0 million by Seven West Media (“Seven”) in Willed with an option of a further $3.0m.
The investment helps Willed to further address the critical need in the market, with over 50% of Australian adults lacking valid Wills and many with no funeral plans.
Pivotal opportunity to increase Willed’s brand awareness & familiarise people to the service through Seven’s extensive network, reaching 19 million Australians each month.
This latest round of investment sees Seven join institutional investors including Founder of PSC Insurance Group, Paul Dwyer, Thorney Investment Group, Ellerston Capital and Morgans’ Hugh Robertson.

Seven has agreed to make a strategic investment of $3.0 million in Willed with an option of a further $3.0m available.

The strategic investment will fuel Willed’s growth plans by utilising Seven’s extensive media network to significantly increase Willed’s market penetration and cement its position as the number one brand in Australia for end-of-life planning & services.

David Kaplan, CEO & Co-founder of Willed commented: “This strategic investment from SWM is a game-changer for Willed because of their unparalleled reach and media expertise. This investment means we can accelerate our growth faster than ever before.”

“This investment not only validates our company’s mission but also comes at a critical time when the rising cost of living is putting serious strain on all Australian households. Willed is uniquely positioned to meet the needs of all Aussies, who deserve to have end-of-life planning demystified and made more affordable.”

“Longer term, the timing couldn’t be better because the largest generational wealth transfer in Australian history is getting underway – making it more important than ever before for people to have their affairs in order.”

Alex Beer, Head of Ventures at Seven West Media said: “In a relatively short period of time Willed has grown into the leading ‘End of Life’ services platform in Australia providing Wills, Funerals and Probate services for today’s online consumer.”

“Traditional operators tend to be limited by location and stick to either funerals or legal services alone. Willed are able to better serve customers across a range of related services.”

“We believe the upside for Willed is significant and in partnership with Seven, we aim to turbo-charge awareness of the Willed brand via a national TVC campaign across Australia.”

With over 50% of Australian adults still without a valid Will, and other segments of the end-of-life services ripe for disruption, the partnership between Willed and Seven addresses these significant needs.

By combining Willed’s user-friendly platform with Seven’s extensive reach, the companies aim to educate and empower millions of Australians to take greater control of their futures.

Since starting up in 2020, Willed have helped over 100,000 Australians to write their legally valid Will online with more than $500 million bequeathed to charities (and counting!). The platform has expanded its range of end-of-life services to include power of attorney, probate, prepaid funeral plans and also at-need funerals.

This latest round of investment sees Seven join previous investors including institutional investors Founder of PSC Insurance Group, Paul Dwyer, Thorney Investment Group, Ellerston Capital and Morgans’ Hugh Robertson.