Insurance payments platform Advance has raised $8.55 mn in seed funding to modernise how insurance intermediaries manage premium flows and fiduciary funds.
The round was led by nvp Capital, with participation from Crystal Venture Partners, Harel Insurance, Vesey Ventures and Mensch Capital.
Strategic angels also joined the round, including Assaf Wand, founder and former CEO of Hippo Insurance.
Advance describes itself as a financial platform purpose-built for insurance intermediaries, including managing general agents, wholesalers and scaled agencies.
These firms manage complex premium flows that require collection, segregation, reconciliation and remittance across multiple counterparties, while meeting strict compliance and audit requirements.
Despite this complexity, many intermediaries still rely on traditional banking relationships, generic payment tools and manual spreadsheet processes to handle premium trust accounts and commissions.
Advance provides bank-supported payment and account infrastructure tailored to insurance use cases. The platform automates the process from payment collection through trust account management, carrier remittance and producer commission distribution.
By reducing manual reconciliation and shortening payment cycles, the company aims to lower operational friction and improve audit readiness.
The system also enables intermediaries to earn yield on idle premium balances where permitted, transforming what has historically been a passive compliance obligation into a potential source of financial return.
Pathpoint Insurance is among the early users. CEO Alex Bargmann said the platform has helped unlock yield on premium funds previously held in trust without return, while improving visibility and replacing manual processes with structured workflows.
“Advance unlocked yield on premium funds we hold in trust that previously generated no return,” said Alex Bargmann.
Its intuitive platform makes managing our premium trust accounts straightforward while replacing manual work with a structured process and increasing visibility into our funds flow.
Alex Bargmann, CEO at Pathpoint Insurance
Investor Vaughn Crowe of nvp Capital said Advance addresses the structural infrastructure challenges behind insurance money movement rather than layering additional point solutions.
“Advance understands that insurance money is different. Most solutions treat the symptoms with point tools and workarounds,” said Vaughn Crowe.
Advance goes deeper – solving the underlying infrastructure problem with a platform built to support our insurance intermediaries with fiduciary responsibilities, operational scale, and regulatory reality.
Vaughn Crowe, Partner at NVP Capital
The company plans to use the new funding to expand product capabilities and accelerate go-to-market efforts among MGAs, wholesalers and high-volume agencies facing increasing premium volumes, regulatory scrutiny and operational complexity.
“Insurance has some of the most complex money movement in financial services, yet it’s still supported by infrastructure that was never designed for how premium dollars actually flow,” said Jonathan Crystal, Managing Partner at Crystal Ventures.
“Advance isn’t adding another layer of tooling – they’re fixing the underlying economics by giving insurance operators a better way to manage premium funds, reduce friction, and turn a required process into a source of value.”
