Dallas-Based Integrity Marketing Group Gets $1.2B Investment to Propel Growth in Insurtech

Dallas-headquartered Integrity Marketing Group, one of the country’s largest independent distributors of life and health insurance products, has received a $1.2 billion investment meant to propel its omnichannel insurtech platform into the new year.

The raise was led by technology investment firm Silver Lake, giving it a minority stake in Integrity. The firm will also gain a seat on the Integrity board of directors and collaborate on initiatives to accelerate the insurance company’s growth.

“Integrity is at the epicenter of the U.S. healthcare and insurance markets,” Adam Karol, managing director at Silver Lake, said in a statement. “The amount of data and distribution capabilities that Integrity has assembled in their omnichannel approach is unlike anything in the market today.”

The majority shareholders continue to be Integrity’s founders, management, and employees. Harvest Partners, a New York-based private equity firm, remains as the largest institutional investor. Palo Alto-based middle-market PE firm HGGC is also a significant investor.

‘Meeting Americans wherever they are’

Integrity bills itself as a leading insurance distributor that focuses on “meeting Americans wherever they are,” whether that be in-person, by phone, or online. It also provides innovative solutions for wealth management and retirement planning.

That means technology lies at the heart of the business—its insurance and financial experience is more simplified and streamlined for the company’s more than 10 million annual clients.

Integrity develops products with its insurance carrier partners, then markets them through a distribution network of insurance agencies across the U.S. The team of some 5,500 employees and more than 420,000 independent agents and advisors work to “innovate the health insurance industry.”

“Insurance and wealth services are crucial components of the healthcare and financial markets—industries ripe for transformative innovation,” Egon Durban, co-CEO of Silver Lake, said in a statement. “We look forward to helping Integrity grow their already robust technology footprint and leverage their extensive data assets and unique distribution system to better meet consumer needs.”

Innovating insurtech

Integrity’s latest investment will hone in on a booming market: insurtech.

Per Reuters, the global investment in insurance technology startups amounted to $10.5 billion in the first nine months of 2021. The publication reports it’s a record high level for that period.

Silver Lake and Integrity’s partnership will focus on accelerating the development and implementation of Integrity’s omnichannel insurtech platform—the only one of its kind, according to the companies.

Integrity said it aims to continue “transforming digital experiences in the industry.” According to Integrity Co-Founder and CEO Bryan W. Adams, the company has already heavily invested in technology and solutions that can improve the insurance and wealth management journey.

Integrity Marketing Group CEO Bryan W. Adams [Photo: Integrity Marketing Group]

“Silver Lake’s proven experience and expertise in digital transformation will help position Integrity to support Americans in protecting their life, health and wealth more than ever before,” Adams said in a statement. “This is a revolutionary partnership that will greatly enhance our mission to help Americans prepare for the good days ahead.”

In April, Integrity acquired Deft Research, a data analytics company that helps the company work with carriers to ensure it’s reviewing and understanding customers’ needs properly. That can lead to product development that Integrity provides directly for carriers.

“We can quote and enroll customers in a product in nanoseconds,” Adams previously said. The proprietary technology allows the sales force to use an iPhone or computer to quote and enroll directly through Integrity’s systems in real time, making sure customers get the best products available.

“We have five million customer interactions a year to make sure they have the right doctor network, they understand the prescription drug benefits, and all the different pieces they need to make sure that they get the most out of their healthcare journeys,” Adams said.

Silver Lake steps in

Silver Lake, which has more than $88 billion in combined assets under management, plans to offer technology guidance that can drive Integrity’s omnichannel distribution network of partners across the life, health, and wealth protection market. Per the firm, its portfolio companies collectively generate more than $221 billion of revenue annually.

Integrity Chairman of the Board Steve Young said the partnership will allow Integrity to expand its solutions portfolio, streamline processes, and enhance the delivery of life, health, and wealth solutions. He said Silver Lake shares in the vision.

“We’re proud of what we’ve achieved so far, but we truly feel like we’re still just getting started,” Young, who is also the co-founder of HGGC, said. “Silver Lake is in a class of its own in transforming companies with data, analytics and high aspirations. We’re confident Silver Lake will help Integrity’s forward-looking platform reach its full potential and we’re excited to add them to our investor group.”

A big year and more growth ahead

Integrity has seen significant growth recently—mostly from its aggressive acquisition strategy—swelling from 1,700 to 5,500 employees just since the start of 2021. The firm made 40 acquisitions in 2020 alone.

Adams attributes the success to expanding the ways in which Americans access life, health, and wealth solutions. The firm predicts new sales placement in 2021 to exceed $7 billion. And, it plans to reach more than $20 billion of assets under management and advisement through its RIA and broker-dealer platforms by the end of the year.

In June, the firm left its Coppell Cypress Waters campus to occupy six floors in I.M. Pei’s iconic Fountain Place tower. The move marked one of the largest additions to downtown Dallas at the time. The fast-growing company plans to keep expanding in its “vertical campus” floor by floor for years to come. It was a large jump from Adams founding Integrity out of his Highland Village home in 2006.

[Photo: Integrity Marketing Group]

Adams previously told Dallas Innovates that Integrity had to move because it had grown so much so fast. He and the team think of themselves “as a rocket ship ready to take off.”