Connect with us

Entrepreneur

Matresa raises £315k for maternal health platform

Published

on

Matresa has raised £315k in pre-seed funding to build a maternal health platform offering personalised screening and support in the UK.

The funding comes as maternal deaths in the UK are at their highest level in more than 20 years, according to the company.

Founded by former nurse Mari-Carmen Sanchez-Morris, Matresa is developing a platform that combines clinical expertise, behavioural science and AI insights to support women through matrescence, the transition from pregnancy into early parenthood.

Sanchez-Morris launched the company after working in a paediatric intensive care unit, where she saw gaps in support for mothers before and after birth.

Sanchez-Morris said: “Poor maternal healthcare isn’t just happening in a vacuum: it affects other areas of healthcare, and stunts women’s career growth, which in turn impacts businesses and the wider economy.

“Tailored care isn’t a privilege – it’s a right. Women and mothers deserve to feel safe and supported, and we need to do more to tackle this crisis.”

One in five women experience maternal mental health disorders or serious complications after childbirth, according to the company.

It says earlier intervention could prevent many of these outcomes, yet gaps in services persist. Preventable maternal health issues are estimated to cost the economy between £13bn and £15bn a year.

The platform also targets employers by offering visibility and insight during maternity leave. Currently, one in three mothers leave the workforce within a year of childbirth, with replacement costs for skilled employees ranging from £30k to £150k.

The pre-seed round was led by SFC Capital.

Edward Stevenson, fund principal at SFC Capital, said: “SFC Capital was delighted to lead this investment round in Matresa.

“We made this investment given the talent and strength of Mari-Carmen and the growing problem that the company is solving. She has demonstrated to us tenacity and determination in all our interactions, all of which suggest to us that she is 100 per cent committed to improving maternal health for women everywhere.”

Matresa is set to launch this summer.

Entrepreneur

Last chance to save on Women’s Health Week and Women’s Sport Summit: Early Bird pricing ends 11 September

Published

on

Early bird pricing for W Group’s two flagship October summits – Women’s Health Week Europe 2026 and Women’s Sport Summit Europe 2026 – closes on 11 September.

Both events take place at Emirates Stadium, London, bringing together founders, investors, corporates, and industry leaders shaping the future of women’s health and sport.

Women’s Health Week Europe 2026

7-8 October | Emirates Stadium, London

This year’s edition will be Women’s Health Week Europe biggest one yet: with 700+ attendees, 80+ speakers, and 20+ sponsors, it will also feature two stages – a Global Stage covering market trends and policy, and a Scale Stage focused on company-level growth and commercialisation. WHW takes place across two days of content, business matchmaking, and dealmaking.

Agenda highlights include:

  • Where Capital Flows: Funding Trends in Women’s Health – with Merete Clausen (EIF), Ekaterina Gianelli (Calm/Storm), Henriette Hessen (Verdane), Jemma Day (British Business Bank), Ravit Warsha Dor (Telus Global Ventures), Tim Davis (LSEG)
  • Six Feet Under-funded: Surviving the Valley of Death in Women’s Health – with Patric Stenberg (Gesynta Pharma), Valentina Milanova (Daye), Amber Vodegel (28x)
  • The Women’s Health Label – Gift or Curse? · Live Debate – with Juan Camilo Arjona Ferreira (organon), Marissa Fayer (DeepLook Medical), Christian Lautner (Heal Capital), Annie Theriault (CBIV), Ida Tin (Clue)
  • Passport to Scale: Taking Your Women’s Health Business Global – with Vanessa Carpenter (Femtech Across Borders), Annie Theriault (CBIV), Victorine Lançon (Daya Ventures), Dr Mridula Pore (Peppy)

Early bird pricing (ends 11 September):

Ticket typeEarly birdStandard
Startups, Scaleups, Investors, Non-Profits, Government£599 + VAT£699 + VAT
Corporates, Payors & Providers£1,799 + VAT£1,999 + VAT
Service Providers & Consultants£3,299 + VAT£3,499 + VAT

Register for Women’s Health Week Europe | See the full agenda for WHW

Women’s Sport Summit Europe 2026

6 October | Emirates Stadium, London

The first-ever Women’s Sport Summit expands W Group’s expertise in connecting key decision-makers to the sports industry.

WSS brings together rights holders, brands, investors, athletes, and media to accelerate commercial growth across the sector.

Agenda highlights include:

  • From capital to crowd: the women’s sport cycle at scale – with Omar Shaikh (Arsenal FC), Nicole McWilliams (Google), Kerstin Lutz (Mercury13), Jo Currie (BBC Sport)
  • Women’s sport through the investor lens: what gets funded – and why – Hugo Sever (APEX Capital)
  • Rethinking ROI: what are we measuring that doesn’t actually matter? – Fi Watherston (Metro Bank), Silvia Keiser (Billie Jean King Cup), Gabriel Akin-Odujobi (Crux Football), Tammy Parlour (WST)
  • Beyond the 90 minutes: matchday as a commercial product, not just a fixture – Maggie Murphy (Aston Villa Women FC), Sam Feasey (Diageo/Guinness), Molly Miller (OneFootball), Megan Feringa (The Athletic/The New York Times)

Early bird pricing (ends 11 September):

Ticket typeEarly birdStandard
General Pass£299 + VAT£399 + VAT
Service Providers & Consultants£1,799 + VAT£1,999 + VAT

Register for Women’s Sport Summit Europe | See the full agenda for WSS

Attending both events?

For group tickets or to attend both summits this October, contact Callum, W Group’s Client Success Lead, at [email protected].

Continue Reading

Pregnancy

KOVE Medical raises €1.7 million to improve safety of foetal surgery

Published

on

KOVE Medical has raised €1.7 million to support first-in-human studies of an implantable device designed to reduce preterm birth risk after foetal surgery.

The University of Zurich spin-off is developing a device designed to close defects left by surgical instruments following fetoscopy, a minimally invasive procedure performed inside the womb.

Fetoscopies can treat life-threatening conditions before birth but require surgical instruments to pass through the uterine wall and amniotic sac.

This can weaken the protective membrane, causing fluid leakage or rupture and often leading to preterm birth.

KOVE Medical said in a statement on LinkedIn: “This is a crucial step forward for our company, and we are incredibly grateful for the strong support and trust from our syndicate of visionary angel investors.”

KOVE Medical says its device closes the defect at the end of the procedure, stabilising the membrane and preventing complications. The aim is to make in-utero interventions safe enough to become a standard method of care.

The company plans to use the seed funding to reach first-in-human studies, a key milestone for a medical device seeking regulatory approval.

The CHF1.6m round was backed by a syndicate of angel investors.

Continue Reading

Entrepreneur

WHIS 2026 adds 18 new speakers to October summit agenda

Published

on

The Women’s Health Innovation Summit (WHIS), the event uniting the global  women’s health ecosystem, has just announced 18 new speakers joining the agenda for  its 2026 summit, taking place October 13–15 at Encore Boston Harbor.

The latest additions bring further depth across pharma, clinical research, health  systems, venture, and policy, reinforcing WHIS’s role as the only platform where the full women’s health ecosystem convenes under one roof.

Newly confirmed speakers include:

  • Kelle Moley, MD – VP, Women’s Health Early Phase Clinical Development, Cardiometabolic Research, Eli Lilly & Company
  • Justine Levin-Allerhand – Executive Partner, Chief Corporate Development Officer & COO, Flagship Labs, Flagship Pioneering
  • Sebnem Yildirimoglu, MD, PMP – Executive Director, Women’s Health Strategy, Premier Research
  • Terri Stewart – Head of Global Healthcare & Government Affairs, EMD Serono
  • Dr. Morag Grassie – Executive Director, Blavatnik Fund for Innovation, Yale
  • Sandra Butler – Director, Design Impact, Mass General Brigham
  • Zhenya Lindgardt – Chief Executive Officer, Sera Prognostics
  • Sadie Morahan – Head of US Revenue, Withings Health Solutions
  • Angela Drew, PhD – Vice President, Regulatory Strategy, Premier Research
  • Dr. Stephanie Lahr – CMIO, Aqurio
  • Michelle Andrews – Contributing Writer, KFF Health News
  • Charlotte Williams – CEO, My Bump Hub
  • Clint Dart, MS – Director, NIH Women’s Health Data Coordinating Center, Premier Research
  • Cass Sanford – US Venture Advisor, FemTech Lab
  • Megan Mukuria – Founder & CEO, ZanaAfrica
  • Tiffany Inglis, MD, FACOG – Chief Medical Officer, Sera Prognostics
  • Angelean Hendrix, PhD – Vice President, Pharmacometrics and MIDD, Premier Research
  • Amanda Ducach – CEO & Co-founder, EmaEQ

“WHIS is where the women’s health industry comes together to take action,” said Poppy Howard-Wall, Event Director at WHIS.

“This latest wave of speakers reflects exactly the kind of cross-sector expertise our attendees expect – from global pharma and clinical research leadership to venture, health systems, and grassroots innovation.

“It’s this breadth that makes WHIS the room where things actually move forward.”

Bringing the Full Ecosystem Together

These additions join a growing 2026 agenda spanning four content tracks that reflect the  full lifecycle of healthcare innovation, from early-stage research and development  through to patient delivery, system transformation, and commercial scale.

Attendees can expect over 1,000 senior decision-makers, 120+ expert speakers, four dedicated stages, and more than 10 hours of curated 1:1 meetings.

Full speaker and agenda details are available at whisusa.com/speakers-2026.

About WHIS

The Women’s Health Innovation Summit is the only platform uniting the full women’s  health ecosystem – providers, payers, employers, pharma leaders, investors, and innovators -to increase deal flow, expand reimbursement, improve access, and deliver better outcomes for women at every stage of life.

 

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2025 Aspect Health Media Ltd. All Rights Reserved.