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Maven raises $125 mln in funding round

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Funding round led by investment firm StepStone

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Maven's total funding climbs over $425 mln

(Adds valuation in headline and paragraph 1, CEO comments in

paragraphs 5-6)

By Arasu Kannagi Basil and Niket Nishant

Oct 8 (Reuters) - Women-focused healthcare firm Maven

Clinic was valued at $1.7 billion after it raised $125 million

in its latest funding round led by private markets investment

firm StepStone Group ( STEP ), it said on Tuesday.

Maven's existing investors General Catalyst, Sequoia, Oak

HC/FT, Icon Ventures, Dragoneer Investment Group and Lux Capital

also participated in the round, the company said.

Startups focused on women's health challenges are steadily

gaining traction with venture capital investors, driven by a

growing recognition of the need for targeted healthcare

solutions.

A report from the World Economic Forum and the McKinsey

Health Institute in January found women spend 25% more of their

lives in debilitating health compared with men.

"Early on, people didn't understand the size of the sector

and how powerful it is. It was clearly one of the great missed

opportunities over the last few decades in health care

innovation," said Kate Ryder, founder and CEO of Maven.

"Women and family health is not just a huge area of health

care that's been undersupported and under-funded, it actually is

the central part of health care."

Founded in 2014, Maven partners with employers and health

plans to provide clinical support through its platform on

preconception, family building, pregnancy, parenting and

menopause.

The New York-based firm caters to more than 2,000 customers

in 175 countries. Telecom operator AT&T ( T ), Wall Street giant

Morgan Stanley ( MS ) and French cosmetics giant L'Oreal

use its services to support their employees' health

needs.

The latest financing round brings Maven's total funding to

more than $425 million, the company said. Maven had last raised

$90 million in a Series E funding round in 2022 led by General

Catalyst.

The company will use the proceeds to further invest in Maven

Managed Benefit, its fertility benefits administration platform.

It will also bolster its offerings across both fully insured and

Medicaid populations.