About
Appalachian Investors Alliance (AIA) is a nonprofit fund administration firm and educational foundation incorporated in 2018 to revitalize economic opportunity across Appalachia through angel investing infrastructure and entrepreneur readiness programs. Founded by Steve Mercil, widely recognized as the nation's most prolific angel group founder, AIA operates a three-pillar model: organizing capital into regional angel funds, providing fund management and technical services including due diligence and deal structuring, and delivering educational resources to demystify early-stage investing for both investors and founders. The organization manages affiliated angel funds capitalized between $1 million and $3 million across multiple states, with individual fund check sizes typically in this range for Series A and early-stage investments. AIA's geographic focus spans Appalachia and beyond, with particular concentration in Kentucky, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and West Virginia. The organization has partnered with over 600 accredited investor members across more than a dozen angel venture funds and has worked directly with 120+ startups. As of the most recent verified data, AIA has facilitated approximately $18 million in private capital deployment into portfolio companies, which have collectively created over 650 jobs. The organization's signature program, the Appalachian Venture Foundry, offers tiered entrepreneur readiness services to make companies more attractive to investors. In September 2024, the Appalachian Regional Commission awarded AIA $3.89 million to expand micro-venture and angel fund operations. AIA's core value proposition addresses a persistent gap in rural venture access: founders and investors in Appalachia face structural disadvantages compared to coastal tech hubs, and AIA provides both the capital networks and technical expertise to compete for venture resources. The organization is supported by leadership with extensive public and private market investing experience.