Yazen, a digital healthcare provider based in Lund, has successfully closed a Series A funding round of € 19.5 million (226 million SEK). This investment comes as Yazen continues to ride the growing wave of interest in GLP-1 drug Ozempic, a medication primarily used for weight management.
The round, led by Evli Growth Partners and Helsana HealthInvest, with participation from Almaz Capital, Yabeo, and existing investors Luminar Ventures and Aggregate Media, aims to bolster Yazen’s international presence. The influx of capital is earmarked for growing Yazen’s subscription-based treatment model worldwide, which has already amassed 20,000 paying members in Sweden and achieved national profitability.
New Chairman from Rovio
In connection with the investment, Yazen welcomes Mikael Hed, founding partner at Evli Growth Partners and former CEO of Rovio (creators of Angry Birds), as the new chairman of the board. His background in building and scaling an international brand will be an invaluable asset for Yazen as the company enters its next phase of growth.
“We are extremely proud of what we have achieved so far and the strong growth we have seen in Sweden. This funding gives us the opportunity to continue our mission to defeat obesity globally. With Mikael Hed as our new chairman and the support from our new investors, we are better positioned than ever to make a difference,”
says Fredrik Meurling, CEO and founder of Yazen.
Founded in 2021 by Magnus Nyhlén, Fredrik Meurling, Otto Bretz, and Martin Carlsson, Yazen has demonstrated a remarkable financial trajectory. After securing over € 3 million (37 million SEK) in funding last year, the company’s revenue surged to 56 million SEK in 2023, marking an almost 2500% increase from the previous year’s 2.2 million SEK.
Magnus Nyhlén is also founder of Min Doktor, one of the leading digital health startups in Sweden. Now he has been part of funding the next big consumer faced digital health startup in the region.
The startup has impressive growth now. Fredrik Meurling, CEO of Yazen, has expressed optimism about the company’s financial outlook, projecting a more than threefold revenue increase for 2024.
“We now have around ten healthcare professionals with dual certifications, which is sufficient to serve those international markets at the present stage. When we have an even more significant number of patients, we will establish ourselves locally as well,”
says Fredrik to Sifted about the funding.
The investment round comes amidst scrutiny over Yazen’s prescription practices, particularly concerning the ease of prescribing Ozempic. An investigative report by SVT’s Uppdrag Granskning highlighted concerns over Yazen issuing weight loss medication to individuals without significant overweight issues.
But a lot is happening in the GLP-1 space, and new use cases and benefits from drugs based on this are discovered. More then obesity and diabetes are relevant in the future reports say. But at this time, the interest from a weight loss perspective is high.
“The market is there, both in terms of people with obesity and willingness to pay. New payers, such as corporate clients, security companies, or public funding bodies, will emerge for this type of treatment,”
Fredrik told Sifted
