Terrence Rohan

I’m thrilled to announce defy.vc’s investment in Birches Health as part of their $20M combined Seed and Series A funding round, alongside incredible partners like AlleyCorp, General Catalyst, Will Ventures, and others. As someone deeply passionate about backing companies that tackle important problems for our society, I couldn’t be more excited about what Birches is building—a national virtual clinic dedicated to treating gambling addiction and related behavioral disorders like gaming, sex, porn, and internet addictions. What excites me most is Birches’ innovative health assurance model: proactive, accessible, and affordable care that’s evidence-based and delivered right at home. With the explosion of legal sports betting—think nearly $1.5 billion wagered on this year’s Super Bowl alone—we’re staring down a looming public health emergency. Traditional options like hotlines or generic therapy fall short for this high-acuity issue, but Birches changes that by offering specialized therapy from trained clinicians, multimodal treatment, and peer support, all covered by major insurers like United Healthcare, Cigna, Aetna, and Blue Cross Blue Shield. It’s available in all 50 states, breaking down geographical and financial barriers that have left so many without help. The impact is already profound: 96% of patients report an improved quality of life, and 94% give Birches a 5/5 rating. By partnering with state governments, payors, and policymakers, Birches is pushing gambling addiction into the spotlight of behavioral health conversations, where it’s been neglected for too long—often leading to shame, worsened outcomes, and higher suicidality risks. This funding will supercharge their growth: expanding the provider network, boosting clinical excellence, scaling infrastructure, and deepening insurance and state partnerships to meet surging demand. Very excited to partner with Elliott Rapaport and the entire Birches team! See more about our POV in the blog post linked in the comments. #GamblingAddiction #BehavioralHealth #HealthTech #VentureCapital #Innovation

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According to Crunchbase, women-only founding teams received less than 2% of global venture funding. Yet across sectors, women-led companies continue to outperform on ROI. At DFX, we meet hundreds of founders each month. Innovation scales faster when capital reaches diverse hands. Always tracking investors actually funding women-led innovation. I found a list from Ivelina Dineva, funds actively writing checks for female founders across AI, Fintech, Climate, Health, and beyond. Here are funds worth keeping on your radar: 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Operator Collective 🔆 ◾Mallun Yen- Founder & MP ◾Dana Marohn & Haley Brannan - Partner ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: B2B / Enterprise (operator-LP model) ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: SF, California 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Amplifyher Ventures ◾Tricia Black - Founder & GP ◾Meghan Cross - Partner ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Commerce, Care, Connectivity ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: NY 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: FreshTracks Capital ◾Lee Bouyea & George Whalen III- GP & Managing Director ◾Cairn Cross - Co-founder & Managing Director ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Tech, Consumer Products, Clean Energy, Advanced Manufacturing, Health/Wellness ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Shelburne, Vermont 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: 1843 Capital ◾Tracy Chadwell - Founding Partner ◾Gwen Weiss - Partner & CFO ◾Sharon Rodriguez - VP ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: AgeTech/Longevity (Health), plus selective tech/fin sectors ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Greenwich, Connecticut 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: CapitalT ◾Janneke Niessen & Eva De Mol Ph.D - Founding Partner ◾Corinne Vigreux - Cornerstone Investor ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Climate Tech, Future of Work ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Amsterdam 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Precursor Ventures ◾Charles Hudson - MP ◾Ashtan Jordan & Marina Girgis- Principal ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀:  Life Sciences, Healthcare ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: SF, California 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Epic Angels ◾Maaike Doyer - Founder ◾Hester Spiegel-vdSteenhoven - Partner ◾Andrea Davidson - Investment Comittee ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀:  All Sectors ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Singapore 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Capita3 ◾Pamela York & Sara Russick - Co-founder & MP ◾Kathy Tune - MP ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Healthtech, Deeptech, B2C, B2B ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: MPLS 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: Conscious Venture Partners ◾Jeff Cherry - CEO Managing GP ◾Joseph W. & John Key - GP ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Healthtech, Sustainability, Impact Investing ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Maryland(Baltimore) 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲: G9 Ventures ◾Amy Griffin - Founder & MP ◾Anna Doherty - Partner ◾Elena Rodriguez-Villa - Chief of Staff ◾𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: Healthtech ◾𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: NY The future doesn’t just need more female founders, it needs investors who bet on them early. Hosting an invite-only B2B AI & Fintech Pitch Session this month. Upload your deal or join the conversation at joindfx.com. Use code ELLA for one month free. If you’re a woman founder, don’t miss our Female Founder Circle (check comments). #PrivateCapital #VC #PE #Founders #Community #Startups

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