💸 Dr. Elina Berglund Scherwitzl's Fertility App Natural Cycles Secures $55M Series C
FemWealth Issue #161
Hi FemWealth Friends,
In the Spotlight 💸
Co-founded and led by Dr. Elina Berglund Scherwitzl, Natural Cycles is a women’s health company that provides the only digital method of birth control cleared by regulators both in the US and in Europe.
The Stockholm-based company secured $55 million in Series C led by Lauxera Capital Partners. The round also included Point72 Private Investments and a revolving credit facility from JPMorgan Chase.
FemWealth Favourites ❤️
Startups: Gameto Secures $33M in Series B Funding to Advance Novel In Vitro Fertilization Treatments - Co-founded and led by Dina Radenkovic, Gameto develops treatment solutions to improve women’s reproductive health throughout their lives. The New York City-based biotech company secured $33 million in a Series B funding round co-led by Two Sigma Ventures and RA Capital. Existing investors Insight Partners, Future Ventures, and BOLD Capital Partners also joined.
Fintech startup Forward grabs $16M to take on Stripe, lead future of integrated payments - Co-founded by Danielle Madison, Forward enables software companies to integrate and monetize payments. The US company announced $16 million in a Seed funding round co-led by Commerce Ventures, Elefund, and Fiserv.
Max Retail Raises $15M Series A to Help Independent Retailers Participate in the Growing Ecommerce Wave - Co-founded and led by Melodie van der Baan, Max Retail is a marketplace that makes it easy for independent retailers and brands to sell excess inventory. The US company announced a $15 million Series A round led by Nosara Capital, with participation from Rethink Impact, M13, The Artemis Fund, and StandUp Ventures.
ExpressionEdits Raises $13M Seed to Redesign Genes for Peak Protein Production
- Co-founded by Kärt Tomberg and Liliana Antunes, ExpressionEdits aims to enhance protein expression using AI and proprietary gene editing technology. The Cambridge, UK-based biotechnology company raised $13 million in Seed funding. Octopus Ventures and redalpine led the round, joined by BlueYard Ventures, Wilbe Capital, Acequia Capital, Amino Collective, and Hawktail.
Rhea Launches Global Reproductive Health Services Company and Acquires Embryonics; Adds Funding from Thiel Capital - Led by Margaret Wang, Rhea Fertility is a Singapore and New York City-based network of reproductive health clinics. The company secured $10 million in a funding round led by Thiel Capital and joined by LifeX Ventures, Blue Lion Global, and FJ Labs.
Iris.ai raises €7.64M to enhance its AI engine to accelerate scientific research - Co-founded and led by Anita Schjøll Abildgaard, Iris.ai provides an AI engine for scientific text understanding. The Norway-based startup raised €7.64 million in a round led by Silverline Capital.
Swiipr raises £6M to disrupt airline compensation - Co-founded and led by Tara Spielhagen, Swiipr enables airlines to digitise disruption payments. The London-based startup raised £6 million in Series A funding. Octopus Ventures led the round, joined by TX Ventures and Solano Partners.
Male Reproductive Health Startup Posterity Health Raises $6M to Fund Expansion and Technology Acceleration - Co-founded and led by Pamela Pure, Posterity Health offers telehealth services for men who deal with fertility issues. The US startup raised a $6 million round led by FCA Venture Partners and joined by Distributed Ventures and WVV.
EU backs Epishine-led consortium with €3.2M for future of OPV and sustainable electronics - Co-founded by Emma Woxlin, Epishine’s printed organic solar cells capture indoor light to make electronics self-powered. The Sweden-based company raised ~€5.9 million in a funding round led by Pareto Securities. Philian, Jula Miljö & Energi, and Klimatet Invest also joined.
Exactly.ai secures $4M to help artists use AI to scale up their output - Founded and led by Tonia Samsonova, Exactly.ai is an AI-powered artwork creation platform that helps artists retain legal ownership. The London-based startup raised a $4 million Seed funding round led by Speedinvest, with additional support from InReach Ventures, Cornerstone VC, and GuruDev Capital.
Revive raises $3.5M seed to monetize returns (Axios Pro $) - Founded and led by Allison Lee, (Re)vive empowers brands to recover the highest asset value from unstockable inventory while streamlining the supply chain. The New York City-based company raised $3.5 million in Seed funding in a round co-led by Equal Ventures and Hustle Fund, with additional support from Banter Capital, Coalition Operators, Mute VC, Veronica Chou, a.o.
Faircado raises $3M to nudge people to buy pre-owned goods - Co-founded and led by Evoléna de Wilde d’Estmael, Faircado offers a browser extension designed to become a discovery layer for pre-owned goods. The Berlin-based company raised €3 million in a round led by World Fund. Accel, General Catalyst, Lightspeed Venture Partners, NEA, Northzone, BackBone Ventures, Earlybird, and Minc accelerator also participated.
Former teen model co-created app Frich to help Gen Z be more realistic about finances - Co-founded by Katrin Kaurov and Aleksandra Medina, Frich aims to become the social financial community for the Gen Z population. The New York City-based fintech raised $2.8 million in a Seed funding round led by Restive Ventures. TruStage, K20, and Spartan Innovations also participated.
Q*Bird raises €2.5M to secure businesses against cyber threats and future quantum attacks - Co-founded and led by Ingrid Romijn, Q*Bird aims to make quantum communications more secure. The Netherlands-based startup raised a $2.7 million round co-led by QDNL Participations and Cottonwood Technology Fund, with additional support from InnovationQuarter.
AI Sign Language Firm Signapse Raises USD 2.4M in Seed Funding - Founded and led by Sally Chalk, Signapse builds AI solutions for people who need access to sign language translation and interpretation. The UK-based startup raised £2 million in Seed funding (£1.5m in equity; £500k grant from the UK government). Soulmates Ventures and Deeptech Seed Fund led the round, with additional support from the Royal Association for Deaf people, Empirical Ventures, CEAS Investments, and FSE Group.
Belgian startup Novobiom bags €2M to combat waste management with fungal biotechnology - Co-founded by Caroline Zaoui, PhD, Novobiom uses fungal biotechnology to turn waste into biogas and reusable materials. The Belgium-based startup raised €2 million in Seed funding from investors including Noshaq, Planetary Impact Ventures, Circular Innovation Fund, and Ciri Ventures.
ZeFi raises €1.6M for behavioural analytics - Co-founded and led by Aurora Maggio, ZeFi uses AI tools to help product teams analyse user feedback. The Turin, Italy-based startup raised €1.6 million in Pre-Seed funding. 360 Capital and 14Peaks Capital led the round, joined by B Heroes, Believe in Tech, Secways, Aticco Ventures, Growth Engine, Vento, and Halo Fund.
Co-led by Julia Kern, SOMAREALITY develops eye-tracking-based biomarkers to assess a person’s cognitive state. The Vienna-based company raised €1.5 million in funding from Gateway Ventures, Wodak & Partner, Panta Rhei and Manfred Stockmayer, Startup Wise Guys, Birdhouse Ventures, and Medical Technology Lab. [via Sifted]
Esgrid secures €500K Pre-Seed funding for value chain sustainability tools - Co-founded and led by Oksana Tolmatshova, Esgrid provides value chain sustainability management solutions for medium-sized enterprises and financial institutions. The Tallinn-based startup raised €500,000 in Pre-Seed funding from Lemonade Stand, EstBAN, Startup Wise Guys, Little Green Fund, and angel investors.
Nextmol gets funds to drive the shift towards sustainability in the specialty chemical industry - Led by Monica de Mier, Nextmol develops digital solutions to accelerate the design of more sustainable chemicals through molecular modelling and AI. The Spanish company raised an undisclosed funding round led by ACT Venture Partners. Axon Partners Group, Abac Nest Venture Capital, and GROW Venture Partners also participated.
German IoT startup Packwise secures funds to scale its industrial tech to North America - Co-founded and led by Gesche Weger, Packwise’s industrial IoT solution enables chemical, pharmaceutical, and food industries customers to gain supply chain transparency. The Dresden-based startup raised an undisclosed seven-figure amount from TGFS Technologiegründerfonds Sachsen and Hüttenes³ GmbH.
VC: Future Ventures targets AI with $169M fund - Co-founded by Maryanna Saenko, US-based VC firm Future Ventures closed a new $169 million fund focused on AI, according to a SEC regulatory filing.
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Anamaria
Founder & Writer of FemWealth