ManchesterStory Group

What ManchesterStory Group does

ManchesterStory Group is a privately held, early-to-growth stage venture capital firm founded in 2016 and headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa. The firm invests across three verticals — InsurTech, FinTech, and HealthTech — deploying strategic capital into approximately 50 portfolio companies, acting as lead investor in roughly 75% of deals, and providing board-level guidance plus introductions to its network of 24 insurance carriers, brokers, and wholesalers. Its geographic position in Des Moines is treated as a core strategic asset because Iowa hosts more than 7,000 finance and insurance companies, supporting deal flow, customer pilots, and LP relationships.

The firm has no proprietary technology product; its core offering is its investment platform, supplemented by the jointly controlled BrokerTech Fund (created in 2019 with BrokerTech Ventures as a first-of-its-kind vehicle for insurance broker and wholesaler technology). ManchesterStory's business model follows standard venture economics — management fees and carried interest on deployed capital — with investment terms negotiated individually with portfolio companies. It markets itself through a 'Know the Story' quarterly newsletter (launched June 2026), open office hours, the BrokerTech Connect conference, and thought-leadership content.

Recent strategic activity (2025–2026) shows an acceleration in deal cadence and a deliberate AI-focused thematic thread: the $3M Stitch seed (insurance AI), the Trussed AI seed (regulated-enterprise AI), the $6.5M XCaliber Health seed (healthcare agentic AI), the $5M Flora Fertility seed, and Series A rounds in Salvo Health ($8.5M) and When ($10.2M). The team of 8 is led by Founding Partners Matt Kinley and Dave Miles, with Nicole Gunderson (promoted to Partner in April 2026) and Principal Mads Jensen forming the active investment bench.

Name

ManchesterStory Group

Legal name

ManchesterStory Group

Website

https://manchesterstory.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ManchesterStory Group is a Des Moines-based early-to-growth stage venture capital firm investing in InsurTech, FinTech, and HealthTech, with 50 portfolio companies, a network of 24 insurance carrier LPs, and the jointly managed BrokerTech Fund.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital / InsurTech & FinTech Investing

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)

Keywords

• Venture capital investing
• InsurTech investments
• FinTech venture capital
• HealthTech early-stage funding
• Insurance industry venture funds

Headquarters

HQ city

West Des Moines

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Venture Capital Returns: ManchesterStory generates returns through equity investments in early-stage startups. As a lead investor, they provide strategic capital to portfolio companies and benefit from exits, IPOs, or secondary sales. The firm is backed by 24 insurance carriers, brokers, and wholesalers who provide capital and strategic relationships.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ManchesterStory Group is an early-to-growth stage venture capital firm that deploys strategic equity capital into early-stage InsurTech, FinTech, and HealthTech companies, acting as lead investor in approximately 75% of its deals. The firm also operates the BrokerTech Fund (co-founded with BrokerTech Ventures) focused on technology for insurance brokers and wholesalers, and provides portfolio companies with board management, strategic guidance, and access to a network of 24 insurance carriers, brokers, and wholesalers.

Product overview

ManchesterStory Group is an early-stage venture capital firm that serves as a strategic investor and partner for startups in the InsurTech, FinTech, and HealthTech sectors. Rather than offering a software product platform, the firm provides investment capital, strategic guidance, board management support, and access to a network of 24 insurance carriers, brokers, and wholesalers based in Des Moines, Iowa. The firm acts as lead investor approximately 75% of the time and deploys capital alongside industry expertise to accelerate innovation across the insurance value chain. The firm's primary offering is its investment platform, supplemented by the BrokerTech Fund (a first-of-its-kind fund focused on insurance broker and wholesaler technology needs, co-founded with BrokerTech Ventures), and thought leadership content distributed through its 'Know the Story' quarterly newsletter.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• BrokerTech Fund: A first-of-its-kind venture fund focused on technology startups developing solutions specifically addressing the needs of insurance brokers and wholesalers, backed by six leading commercial brokers.

Products and services

• ManchesterStory Fund Primary venture capital fund deploying strategic equity capital into early-stage InsurTech, FinTech, and HealthTech companies, backed by 24 insurance carriers, brokers, and wholesalers as limited partners.
• BrokerTech Fund First-of-its-kind venture fund co-founded with BrokerTech Ventures, focused on technology startups developing solutions specifically addressing the needs of insurance brokers and wholesalers, backed by six leading commercial brokers.
• Discovery Fund II ManchesterStory's later-stage discovery fund used to invest in seed-stage rounds (e.g., Trussed AI), complementing the main fund and BrokerTech Fund.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• BrokerTech Ventures (BTV)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019ManchesterStory partnered with BrokerTech Ventures on a first-of-its-kind venture fund (BrokerTech Fund) focused on technology startups developing solutions specifically addressing the needs of insurance brokers and wholesalers. The BrokerTech Fund is backed by six leading commercial brokers. Both accelerators collaborate through a 'co-opetition' model.
• Global Insurance Accelerator (GIA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounded in 2014, GIA supports insurtech startups with capital, mentorship, and access to Iowa's network. Success stories include Cowbell Cyber which raised $100 million at $1 billion valuation. ManchesterStory's Nicole Gunderson previously served as Managing Director of GIA.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Anthemis: Venture capital firm focused on financial services and insurtech with deep LP relationships across the insurance industry. Directly comparable as a sector-specialist VC with insurance-LP-backed funds investing across InsurTech and FinTech.
• IA Capital Group: Early-to-growth stage venture capital firm focused exclusively on InsurTech, backed by insurance industry carriers and brokers. Closely comparable in sector focus, LP model, and lead-investor posture toward insurtech founders.
• Brewer Lane Ventures: Early-stage venture capital firm focused on insurance technology and insurance-adjacent startups. Comparable as a small, sector-focused VC partnering with insurance incumbents to back InsurTech founders.
• Octava Ventures: Specialist venture fund focused on insurance and insurance-adjacent technology companies. Comparable in sector focus, stage (early-stage), and strategic-capital orientation toward insurtech founders.
• Benhamou Global Ventures: Early-stage venture firm investing across enterprise software, fintech, and insurtech. Co-investor in ManchesterStory-led rounds (e.g., XCaliber Health), making it a directly comparable specialist with overlapping deal flow.
• Quaestus Capital Management: Venture firm focused on insurtech and insurance-adjacent businesses with backing from insurance industry partners. Comparable in sector focus and strategic-capital model, though with a broader stage range including growth investments.

Broad incumbents

• F-Prime Capital: Sector-focused venture firm with a dedicated insurtech practice and fintech/healthtech presence. Comparable in vertical specialization and ability to lead rounds, but operates with larger fund sizes and broader stage coverage.

Emerging players

• Plug and Play InsurTech: Global innovation platform with a dedicated InsurTech accelerator program that matches insurance carriers with startups. Comparable in vertical specialization and insurance-corporate partnership model, though accelerator-structured vs fund-only.
• Techstars InsurTech Accelerator: Techstars-operated accelerator program for InsurTech founders with insurance carrier sponsorship. Comparable in sourcing and supporting early-stage insurtech companies, but accelerator-structured with cohort-based programming.

Regional players

• Connecticut Innovations: State-backed venture capital firm with a portfolio spanning InsurTech, FinTech, and HealthTech. Comparable in vertical breadth and stage focus, though operates primarily within Connecticut rather than Des Moines/Iowa.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/manchesterstory
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/manchesterstory

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments50 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ManchesterStory Group