Why We Invested in DenZen: Modern Safety Nets for a Generation on the Financial Edge
At Halcyon Venture Partners, we invest in founders building bold solutions to structural inequities—using technology, policy insight, and business savvy to build resilience where traditional systems have failed.
Kait Feeney
Co-founder and CEO of DenZen
That’s why we’re excited to back DenZen, an insurtech company rebuilding financial resilience for renters and homeowners at a moment when traditional safety nets are failing.
From protecting households from the shock of sudden job loss to giving property owners predictable cash flow through downturns, DenZen is not just offering a new insurance product—it’s redesigning stability for a generation living on the edge.
The Problem: Housing Insecurity Meets Job Insecurity
More than 44 million renter households in the U.S. lack any protection if they lose their income.
65% of Millennials and 72% of Gen Z live paycheck to paycheck
Job loss is the leading cause of 5 million evictions and foreclosures annually[DG1]
Public unemployment insurance often replaces less than 50% of income—and doesn’t cover rent
Previous job-loss insurance attempts failed due to adverse selection and poor distribution
As automation accelerates and benefits shrink, this gap will only grow. DenZen steps into that void with a product designed to keep people housed.
The Solution: Embedded Protection at the Point of Lease or Purchase
DenZen’s product pays three to six months of rent or mortgage directly to landlords or lenders when a policyholder loses their job.
The experience is seamless:
Offered at lease signing or mortgage origination
One-click opt-in with no paperwork
No separate underwriting or claims processing delays
For property managers and lenders, DenZen provides predictable income, reduced turnover, and protection against costly evictions (which average $10,000) or foreclosures ($77,000).
Distribution Strategy: A B2B2C Model That Scales
DenZen’s go-to-market is embedded directly into:
Property management software
Rental application platforms
Mortgage origination workflows
Through a single integration, they can reach thousands of tenants. And because the product is offered only at the “neutral moment” of housing application—not mid-lease—it avoids adverse selection entirely.
Why We Invested
We backed DenZen because it meets four of our core investment criteria:
Large, underserved market with a clear pain point and minimal existing coverage
Embedded, scalable distribution that neutralizes adverse selection
Founders with deep execution and regulatory experience
CEO Kait Feeney scaled Tilt from pre-seed to eight-figure ARR
CLO Derek Witte brings two decades of insurance compliance expertise
A clear path to impact and scale—and the ability to expand into adjacent income-protection offerings over time
DenZen isn’t a one-off product. It’s the beginning of a new category of embedded financial stability.
