Innovative Contraceptive App Natural Cycles Secures $30M In Funding

STOCKHOLM, Sweden — Swedish contraceptive app Natural Cycles has raised $30 million in Series B funding to aid clinical research, product development and international expansion.

Led by EQT Ventures, which has investments in technology-driven companies across all industries, such as Min Doktor and Wolt, the round also included participation from existing investors Sunstone, E-ventures and Bonnier Growth Media.

Commenting on the new funding, Natural Cycles Co-Founder, Dr Elina Berglund explained:

“Over the last three years we have expanded women’s contraceptive choices and demonstrated that there is a universal, unmet need for products like Natural Cycles, which is the first contraceptive app with proven efficacy. We have created something truly unique, and are just beginning to see the possibilities for how Natural Cycles can revolutionize the way women take full control over their bodies and reproductive health at large.”

More than 500,000 women from over 161 countries currently use Natural Cycles. The app, which was recently shown to be 93% effective with typical use, uses an advanced and scientific algorithm to accurately predict when a woman is fertile. Popular with those searching for a natural alternative to hormonal contraceptives, it provides a more holistic approach that taps into the current evolution of the feminine care market in which women are demanding options that enable them to take back control of their bodies.

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Founded by Berglund, a top physicist and her husband Dr Raoul Scherwitzl in 2014, it works by detecting a woman’s ovulation and calculating her fertile days — taking factors, such as her temperature, period, cycle irregularities and sperm survival, into account.

Currently, the world’s first and only app to be certified as a valid form of contraception in Europe, in Sweden an offline version of the product is now available for purchase at  Apoteket, one of Sweden’s oldest and most renowned pharmacies. This is a model Scherwitzl hopes to emulate on a global scale.

“We’re really planning to build a very large company. The vision is really to increase choice in contraception and accelerate time to pregnancy — a world where every pregnancy is wanted,” Scherwitzl told TechCrunch.

To facilitate that, future research will be focused on studying acceptability among women by observing the impact of factors such as age, country of origin, social stratification, irregular menstrual cycles and dedication to the method.