Reproductive health benefits start-up Fertifa swoops on rival Juniper

A reproductive wellness start-up tally by 1 of Britain's astir salient task capitalists has swooped connected 1 of its peers amid increasing request from ample companies for the proviso of fertility and different intersexual health-related benefits to their workforces.

Sky News understands that Fertifa, which is tally by Eileen Burbidge, 1 of Britain's astir salient task capitalists, has agreed a woody to bargain Juniper, a 2 year-old London-based institution which provides reproductive wellness insurance.

Sources said the woody - worthy an undisclosed sum - would beryllium announced publically connected Thursday.

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It volition supply caller grounds of the accelerating consolidation of an country of healthcare which has gained expanding prominence arsenic portion of companies' worker benefits packages successful caller years.

Fertifa counts Meta - the proprietor of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp - among its clients, on with different blue-chip businesses specified arsenic the backstage equity steadfast Hg Capital, H&M, Lululemon, MoFo, Space NK and Virgin Group.

The start-up raised £5m successful backing from investors including Notion Capital, Triple Point Ventures and Speedinvest 2 years ago, pursuing an archetypal pre-seed circular led by Passion Capital.

Fertifa is the exclusive supplier of the insurer Aviva UK's household readying and fertility payment for galore of its healthcare schemes.

The start-up's offering is based connected a per-employee, per-month pricing model, and offers reimbursement medication by charging a 5% interest connected transaction volumes.

It has besides broadened its services successful caller years by adding men's health, neurodiversity enactment and a outgo program allowing employees to debar up-front costs.

Juniper, which was founded by Ambra Zhang and Max Bacon, was acceptable up to code a spread successful the backstage aesculapian security (PMI) marketplace by focusing connected reproductive wellness coverage.

It besides raised backing from outer investors, including Insuretech Gateway and 2100.

The accelerated maturation of backstage fertility work providers has fixed emergence to greater scrutiny of their practices, with the illness of Apricity, 1 salient institution successful the sector, astatine the extremity of past twelvemonth leaving immoderate IVF patients thousands of pounds retired of pouch and asking questions astir the unregulated quality of the industry.

At the time, a connection from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) said it could "only modulate UK licensed fertility clinics, which are the premises wherever treatments instrumentality place".

"The determination to cease trading was taken by Apricity's board," it added.

"The HFEA is incapable to assistance patients get a refund nor compensation.

"Patients tin besides interaction the licenced session wherever immoderate procedures, specified arsenic ovum collection, were owed to instrumentality place.

"We would expect Apricity to guarantee that immoderate eggs, sperm oregon embryos stored successful the UK are looked after."

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One marketplace root said that Fertifa's acquisition of Juniper would fortify its presumption arsenic an emerging person successful the sector.

Other firm deals successful the manufacture person included Nasdaq-listed Progyny's acquisition of Apryl, a Verlin-based fertility benefits platform, successful June 2024.

Ms Burbidge and Juniper declined to remark connected the woody connected Wednesday up of a ceremonial announcement.