Wakam Commits to Precision Psychiatry: €250,000 to Transform Mental Health

On 13 April 2026 in London, Wakam will present the first Precision Mind Prize, worth  €250,000, in partnership with the FondaMental Foundation. This investment in Franco-British research on psychiatric biomarkers illustrates how insurance can play an active role in reducing one of the sector’s most costly and least understood risks. 

Mental health: the underestimated risk weighing heavily on the bottom line 

Mental health disorders now represent one of the most dynamic claims areas for insurers: the leading cause of long-term sick leave in Europe, a growing driver of disability claims and income protection benefits, and an aggravating factor in many  chronic conditions covered by supplemental health insurance. 

Yet unlike cancer or cardiovascular disease, psychiatry remains a field without validated biological markers. No objective tool for early diagnosis, no reliable criteria for risk  stratification, no personalised treatment to reduce claims duration. For insurers, this makes it a risk that is difficult to model, and therefore difficult to manage. 

This is precisely the scientific barrier that Wakam has chosen to help break down. 

The Precision Mind Prize: a bet on transforming psychiatric risk 

Wakam, in partnership with the FondaMental Foundation, is launching the Precision  Mind Prize: a €250,000 endowment designed to fund a collaborative Franco-British  research project on psychiatric biomarkers. These biological indicators – blood based, neuroimaging, or digital – are the key to transforming psychiatry into a precision medicine discipline, much like what has already been achieved in oncology and cardiology. 

Supported projects aim to: 

• Diagnose earlier – detecting disorders before they worsen and generate lengthy, costly claims; 
• Personalise treatments – reducing the time to effective care, and therefore the  duration of sick leave and disability;
• Break the taboos around mental illness – destigmatising psychiatric  conditions to improve their declaration and overall management. 

For the insurance sector, the implications are direct: a deeper understanding of  biomarkers opens the door to finer risk modelling, better-calibrated income protection products, and more effective prevention policies. 

13 April in London: the inaugural Precision Mind Prize ceremony 

The ceremony will take place in London on 13 April 2026. Olivier Jaillon, Chairman of  the Board of the Wakam Group, will announce the winners, selected by a panel of  Franco-British experts. The date and venue are no coincidence: they reflect Wakam’s  Franco-British roots – present across continental Europe and the United Kingdom – and its ambition to build an international scientific partnership commensurate with the  challenges ahead. 

Wakam: the insurer investing in upstream risk prevention 

This initiative is part of the Wakam for Good strategy, Wakam’s endowment fund, and its  purpose as a mission-driven company. It reflects a strong conviction: the insurer of the  future cannot settle for managing claims. It must invest in the conditions that reduce the  frequency and severity of the risks it covers. 

“Economic and social shifts are accelerating vulnerabilities. As insurers, we believe that  innovation and progress must serve people. The Precision Mind Prize will accelerate research in precision mental health and pave the way for truly personalised medicine.” Catherine Charrier-Leflaive, CEO of the Wakam Group and President of Wakam for Good 

“Beyond enabling better and more precise patient care, this research will contribute to  destigmatisation by demonstrating that many mental illnesses are, in reality,  physiological conditions.” Olivier Jaillon, Chairman of the Board – Wakam Group 

“This prize aspires to be a true catalyst for Franco-British research in precision  psychiatry. It invites researchers, start-ups, and companies to join forces to transform  our understanding of mental illness.” Marion Leboyer, CEO of the FondaMental  Foundation 

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