The funding round was co-led by Insurtech Gateway and Mustard Seed Maze. The primary objective behind this financing is to expand Yurtle’s team and introduce the world’s inaugural digital care ally.

The overarching vision of Yurtle is to foster a global environment where individuals retain the autonomy to live independently as they age. Central to this vision is the empowerment of informal social care networks to administer care support in a manner that is both sustainable and efficient.

Addressing an ageing population

The global demographic shift towards an ageing population underscores the pressing need for more caregivers, as highlighted by recent data. Statistics reveal that the number of individuals aged 65 and above is increasing at twice the pace of younger age groups worldwide. Moreover, people are living longer lives compared to historical norms, albeit often grappling with poor health conditions.

In the United Kingdom, the absence of adequate public provisions has resulted in approximately 12,000 individuals assuming caregiving responsibilities daily for elderly, frail, sick, or disabled loved ones. However, when caregivers lack support in the workplace, they jeopardize their overall well-being while imposing significant costs on employers. Productivity losses, absenteeism, and turnover collectively amount to £4.8 billion annually for UK employers.

Addressing this critical societal issue, Yurtle, a London-based insurtech, has developed a B2B solution aimed at preventing caregiver burnout. Funded by employers, Yurtle’s innovative platform assists caregivers in constructing a resilient care network and establishing a financial safety net for times of health crises.

The employer-funded employee benefit targets HR departments of corporations committed to enhancing employee well-being and fostering gender equality in the workplace, given that over 65% of caregivers are women. Yurtle has already secured distribution access to more than 60% of the UK corporate market.

Yurtle’s application facilitates employees in evaluating their caregiving responsibilities—often overlooked due to prioritising the needs of family members—providing personalised advice on enhancing caregiving effectiveness, and guiding them on mobilising existing networks to share caregiving duties.

Furthermore, Yurtle offers a unique insurance product that offers employees peace of mind. In the event of an inability to fulfill their caregiving role due to illness or accidents, employees can access funds and professional backup care to ensure continuity of care for dependents.

Yurtle’s founder, Antonio Ribeiro, draws from personal experiences witnessing the strain of caregiving within his family. His grandfather received familial and professional support in battling ALS, while his grandmother currently relies heavily on family assistance in confronting age-related frailty and vascular dementia.

Ribeiro said: “We believe there is no single systemic challenge more pressing or fascinating to solve for than our ageing population. We are thrilled to have secured funding that allows us to continue building the tools families need to meet their obligations of care for loved ones without sacrificing their health. With the formal announcement of Jose Ribeiro as Chairman of Yurtle, this is truly a mission to give others what we wish our family had access to in its time of need”

Sofia Queiroz, Investment Principal at MSM, also commented, saying: “For MSM, tackling the challenge of a growing elderly population has always been an area of interest, considering the size of the problem and the impact potential. However, it was only clear to us after meeting Yurtle that a scalable business model could be found in the space. The combo of a solution that solves the financial (insurance) and non-financial (platform) issues linked to caregiving, together with a business model that splits the responsibility between employees and employers, makes this possible. António and the team he built around Yurtle couldn’t be a better fit to tackle this problem, with a combination of business, insurance, behavioral science and on-the ground experience working with caregivers.”

Speaking about the fundraising, Richard Chattock, CEO at Insurtech Gateway, said: “Caregiving is the single largest driver of underrepresentation of women in the senior leadership, it is behind the gender pension and pay gaps, and the lower participation of women in paid work.”

He added: “Yurtle’s product takes a direct approach to tackle this inequality, offering caregivers the community support and financial security necessary to look after their own health and career, while providing high-quality care to loved ones. We are proud to support Yurtle as they expand their product across the UK and beyond.”