Distributed Ventures
Distributed Ventures is a Chicago-based venture capital firm managing $155M AUM, investing $1–5M Seed and Series A checks in US-based startups across the health, insurance, and wealth verticals, with the added differentiator of enterprise distribution access through its limited-partner network.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2025
- HeadquartersManhattan, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Distributed Ventures does
Distributed Ventures is a Chicago-based venture capital firm managing $155M in total assets under management, founded in 2018 to make Seed and Series A investments across three interlocking verticals — health, insurance, and wealth — framed as the "frontier of risk." The firm deploys checks of $1–5M with a 15–20% target ownership and takes a board seat or observer rights at portfolio companies, concentrating capital in early-stage founders building digital health, employer benefits, insurtech distribution, and wealthtech infrastructure for advisors and contingent workforces. Its core offering is a single venture fund; layered services include an eight-member Advisory Board providing operator-level go-to-market and domain expertise, an LP-facing investor portal hosted via FundPanel, and a content-marketing presence on Medium covering investment themes across health, insurance, and wealth.
The firm's underlying platform is not a proprietary technology product but a curated distribution engine built on its limited-partner base — insurance carriers underwriting $15B of GWP, asset managers with $50B AUM and $400B+ AUI, and 265K+ corporate clients — which the firm leverages to give portfolio founders enterprise customer introductions rather than capital alone. The investment team is small (Managing Partner Shawn Ellis, Senior Principal Janet Xu, Senior Associate Hylton Irons, and Antonio Calderon), supported by a Growth Partner (Joe Flanagan) and eight named advisors from Modern Health, NFP/Aon, Fiducient Advisors, Teladoc, Sidley Austin, Method Capital, Acquirent, and Sespe Health Holdings.
Revenue is generated through conventional fund-management economics (management fees on $155M AUM and carried interest on portfolio realizations), with portfolio exits (Ascend, CoverTree, CVRD, Focal, Indio, Kai Health, Origin Therapy, Posterity Health) and follow-on financings (Sage $35M Series B, Honeycomb $36M Series B, Wingspan $24M Series B) producing long-term return optionality. Distribution is relationship-driven: direct founder outreach via the firm's website and [email protected], warm introductions from the LP network, and inbound from content and earned media. The firm invests exclusively in US-domiciled companies.
Distributed Ventures firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Distributed Ventures
- Legal name
- Distributed Ventures
- Website
- https://distributedvc.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2025
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Distributed Ventures is a Chicago-based venture capital firm managing $155M AUM, investing $1–5M Seed and Series A checks in US-based startups across the health, insurance, and wealth verticals, with the added differentiator of enterprise distribution access through its limited-partner network.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Distributed Ventures industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital / Private Equity
- akta.pro primary industry
- Venture Capital Fund-of-Funds / Multi-Manager Platforms (FSANAAAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Venture Capital Fund-of-Funds (FSANAGAC)
Keywords
Where Distributed Ventures is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Manhattan
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Distributed Ventures business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Venture Fund Management: Operates a venture capital fund with $155M total AUM; revenue is generated via conventional fund management economics (management fees on AUM and carried interest on portfolio exits), consistent with industry-standard VC fund structures. Check sizes of $1-5M deployed across Seed and Series A rounds.
- Portfolio Exits / Returns: Long-term return generation via portfolio company liquidity events (acquisitions, M&A, secondary sales). Several portfolio companies are noted as 'Acquired' on the firm's portfolio page (e.g., Ascend, CoverTree, CVRD, Focal, Indio, Kai Health, Origin Therapy, Posterity Health).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Seed and Series A investment: $1-5M check size; 15-20% target ownership; board seat or observer rights |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Distributed Ventures product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Distributed Ventures is a venture capital firm that leads Seed and Series A investments of $1-5M in U.S. health, insurance, and wealth startups, targeting 15-20% ownership with board seat or observer rights. The fund pairs capital with LP-network-sourced enterprise distribution access and operator mentorship from an Advisory Board and Growth Partner. The firm manages $155M in total AUM and uses this capital plus its LP relationships to accelerate portfolio companies' go-to-market momentum.
Product overview
Distributed Ventures is a single venture capital firm rather than a multi-product software platform. Its core offering is a Seed and Series A fund that invests $1-5M checks in U.S. health, insurance, and wealth startups with a 15-20% target ownership and board seat or observer rights, marketed under the tagline "precision capital at the frontier of risk." Layered on top of the fund are founder-support services, including the Distributed Ventures Advisory Board (which adds operating, go-to-market, venture, and OCIO/allocator expertise for portfolio companies) and an LP-facing Investor Portal hosted via FundPanel for limited-partner reporting. A subscription newsletter rounds out the firm's public-facing touchpoints. Note: companies frequently named on the site (e.g., Focal, CVRD, Sage, Posterity Health, Cylinder, Wingspan, Honeycomb, TrustLayer) are portfolio investments, not Distributed Ventures' own products.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Distributed Ventures Seed and Series A Fund Seed and Series A venture capital fund providing $1-5M checks, 15-20% target ownership, and board seat or observer rights to U.S. health, insurance, and wealth startups, paired with LP-network enterprise distribution access. The fund is marketed under the thesis "precision capital at the frontier of risk."
Quantifiable outcome
- $155M total AUM under management
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Distributed Ventures
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Distributed Ventures technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature2 records
Distributed Ventures partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Modern HealthcoreAdvisory-board relationship: Matt Levin, CEO of Modern Health (a global workplace mental health platform), serves on the Distributed Ventures Advisory Board, providing operating and go-to-market expertise to portfolio companies.
- NFP, an Aon companycoreAdvisory-board relationship: Doug Hammond, Chairman and CEO of NFP (an Aon company, insurance brokerage/consulting), serves on the Distributed Ventures Advisory Board, providing executive perspective on insurance distribution.
- Fiducient AdvisorscoreAdvisory-board relationship: Bob DiMeo, Chairman and co-founder of Fiducient Advisors (investment advisory firm), serves on the Distributed Ventures Advisory Board, contributing OCIO/allocator perspective.
- Method CapitalcoreAdvisory-board relationship: Lon Chow, Partner at Method Capital and active angel investor in 70+ early-stage startups, serves on the Distributed Ventures Advisory Board, supporting venture and investment decisions.
- AcquirentcoreJoseph Flanagan, Founder and Chairman of Acquirent (and LeadJen), serves as Growth Partner at Distributed Ventures and helps portfolio companies design go-to-market strategies and commercial teams.
- Croke Fairchild Duarte & BeresminorPatrick Croke, founding partner of Croke Fairchild Duarte & Beres and former Sidley Austin partner, serves on the Distributed Ventures Advisory Board, providing strategic legal and corporate-restructuring counsel.
- Teladoc HealthminorLisa Garvy, former Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships at Teladoc Health, serves on the Distributed Ventures Advisory Board, contributing virtual-care and digital-health strategic-partnership expertise.
- Sespe Health HoldingsminorSander Duncan, Founder & CEO of Sespe Health Holdings and Partner at Endurance Companies, serves on the Distributed Ventures Advisory Board, advising on healthcare investments and portfolio support.
- NationwideminorPartnered with TrustLayer (a Distributed Ventures portfolio company) to simplify and secure insurance verification for Nationwide's commercial customers and partners. TrustLayer is a collaborative risk management platform automating insurance, license, and compliance verification.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Distributed Ventures competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Lerer Hippeau: Early-stage venture firm investing across consumer, enterprise, and health startups. Broader incumbent peer with comparable Seed/Series A check size range and NYC presence, but less vertical concentration than Distributed Ventures.
Direct peers
- IA Capital Group: Specialist insurtech venture firm focused on early-stage insurance and risk-related startups. Direct peer on the insurance vertical of Distributed Ventures' risk-ecosystem thesis.
- Wischoff Ventures: Early-stage venture firm that co-led Focal's $5M seed round with Distributed Ventures. Direct peer in the wealthtech vertical with comparable check size and stage focus.
- Munich Re Ventures: Corporate venture arm of Munich Re focused on insurtech, digital health, and mobility startups globally. Comparable in LP-backed distribution and risk-ecosystem thesis, though broader geographic scope.
- Touring Capital: Insurance and financial services-focused growth investor that led Wingspan's $24M Series B (Distributed Ventures is an investor). Peer on the insurance/workforce vertical with comparable LP-aligned thesis.
- Waterline Ventures: Healthcare-focused early-stage investor that co-invested with Distributed Ventures in CVRD Health's $5M seed round. Direct peer in the health vertical with comparable stage and check size.
- MassMutual Ventures: Strategic CVC backed by MassMutual that invests in early-stage insurtech, wealthtech, and fintech startups. Closely comparable to Distributed Ventures' insurance and wealth vertical thesis and LP-driven distribution model.
- F-Prime Capital: Early-stage venture firm investing across healthcare, insurance, and financial services with a focus on category-defining companies. Highly comparable to Distributed Ventures' health/wealth focus and stage.
- HSCM Ventures: Insurance and insurtech-focused early-stage venture platform under Hudson Structured Capital Management. Direct peer on the insurtech side of Distributed Ventures' thesis.
- SteelSky Ventures: Described as the largest women's health fund; co-invested with Distributed Ventures in Posterity Health's $13M Series A. Direct peer in the health vertical with overlapping network at the seed/Series A stage.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Distributed Ventures social profiles
Digital presenceDistributed Ventures financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Distributed Ventures leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
Distributed Ventures funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Distributed Ventures M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments36 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Distributed Ventures
What does Distributed Ventures do?
Distributed Ventures is a venture capital firm that leads Seed and Series A investments of $1-5M in U.S. health, insurance, and wealth startups, targeting 15-20% ownership with board seat or observer rights. The fund pairs capital with LP-network-sourced enterprise distribution access and operator mentorship from an Advisory Board and Growth Partner. The firm manages $155M in total AUM and uses this capital plus its LP relationships to accelerate portfolio companies' go-to-market momentum.
Is Distributed Ventures a public or private company?
Distributed Ventures is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Distributed Ventures founded?
Distributed Ventures was founded in 2025. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Distributed Ventures based?
Distributed Ventures is headquartered in Manhattan, United States, in the North America region.
How does Distributed Ventures make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Venture Fund Management is the primary driver. The others are portfolio Exits / Returns.
Who are Distributed Ventures's main competitors?
Lerer Hippeau is listed as a broad incumbent. Direct peers are IA Capital Group, Wischoff Ventures, Munich Re Ventures, Touring Capital, Waterline Ventures, MassMutual Ventures, F-Prime Capital, HSCM Ventures and SteelSky Ventures.
Does Distributed Ventures have an API?
No public API is recorded for Distributed Ventures.
What industry is Distributed Ventures in?
Distributed Ventures's product category is Venture Capital / Private Equity. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAJ, Venture Capital Fund-of-Funds / Multi-Manager Platforms, with a secondary code of FSANAGAC, Venture Capital Fund-of-Funds.