MTIP invests in Koa Health to make mental health treatment more accessible

MTIP recently joined a EUR 30 million funding round as one of the major investors in Koa Health, a digital mental healthcare provider redefining care. Koa Health’s range of personalized mental health solutions are backed by science and designed to improve user wellbeing. The investment will be used to drive the company’s efforts to advance the digital mental health space and to help make mental healthcare more accessible.

Swiss healthtech investor MTIP welcomes Koa Health as its newest portfolio addition backed by MTIP Fund II. In November 2020, Koa Health successfully spun out of leading Spanish global telecommunications company, Telefónica, which will remain a shareholder and an important customer and partner as the company continues to develop its portfolio.

MTIP supports the company’s ambitions to expand internationally and scale to meet the rapidly growing demand for digital mental health products. Nearly 1 billion people worldwide are living with a mental disorder according to the World Health Organization (WHO), which has called for a substantial increase in investments to avert a global mental health crisis as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. There has never been a greater need for digital solutions to support individuals’ mental health than now.

The company’s debut product is Koa Foundations, a mental wellbeing app helping organizations better support their employees. Following its recent launch, Koa Foundations is already in use by dozens of companies with a combined employee population of over 250,000. Koa Foundations offers its users a library of evidence-based activities to improve their wellbeing. This includes tackling stress, sleeping better, aiding relaxation, positive thinking as well as boosting self-confidence. Supported by MTIP’s investment, the company will launch a wide range of mental health solutions, from digital wellbeing to digital therapeutics, to improve users’ mental wellbeing as well as helping them access mental health services anytime, anywhere.

As part of its continued development, Koa Health will increase investment in clinical trials and scale R&D to further personalize its products. The company is closely collaborating with different organizations, such as the Massachusetts General Hospital (the #1 US-ranked hospital for psychiatry and psychology), and the Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust in the UK.

Oliver Harrison, CEO of Koa Health, comments proudly on the young company’s achievements and on the potential of the new partnership with MTIP: “It is increasingly clear that digital technology has the potential to help close the growing demand gap in mental healthcare. However, the field has been limited by the inherent challenges of providing an integrated, evidence-based, ethical, and personal solution that fits the needs of users and customers. Because of Telefónica’s support, we have been able to deliver this solution. With MTIP’s investment and active support, Koa Health will expand internationally, invest more in clinical trials, and continue to develop personalized products. Our goal is to provide easy access to a range of digital mental health solutions that help people flourish in a challenging and changing world.”

David Germonpré, Partner at MTIP, who joins the Board of Directors, said: “Koa Health offers simple, trusted, and personalized solutions that are integrated from prevention to symptom management to clinical care. The digital-first approach means they are scalable and affordable, with no compromise on quality. We were pleasantly surprised by the innovative force of the company’s technology and the deep knowledge of its team to scale rapidly on a global level.” Dr. Christoph Kausch, Managing Partner at MTIP, continued: “The demand for mental health services is dramatically increasing on a global level. We consider Koa Health to be best placed to lead the global expansion of digital mental health solutions. As a spin-out of Telefónica’s moonshot project their readiness impressed us deeply, and we are pleased to support them in their mission to provide better access to treatment for mental health issues”.

For more Information please contact:

Jessica Di Palo @MTIP

E-Mail: communications@mtip.ch

ABOUT KOA HEALTH

Koa Health is the only digital mental healthcare provider that offers integrated mental health solutions, from improving wellbeing to supporting treatment for a range of common mental disorders. Koa Health’s solutions are personalized services with proven user outcomes. Headquartered in the Netherlands, Koa Health has operations in Barcelona, the US and the UK. Koa Health partners with leading clinicians and academics including Massachusetts General Hospital, University College of London, the London School of Economics, Birmingham and the Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust.

For more information, please visit www.koahealth.com

ABOUT MTIP

MTIP is a pan-European healthtech growth capital investor, based in Basel Switzerland. We invest in digital health and digitally connected medical device companies, with offerings that provide clear health-related economic benefits. Our entrepreneurial investment team, which has complementary private equity skills and exceptional deal-making capabilities, actively works with our portfolio companies to boost growth. MTIP efficiently deploys capital to unlock value and generate attractive returns for our investors.

For more information, please visit www.mtip.ch