Asabys’ portfolio company Cara Care is acquired by Mahana Therapeutics
Mahana Therapeutics, a leading provider of digital chronic condition management programs, announced today that it has acquired Berlin-based HiDoc Technologies GmbH, operating as Cara Care, a leader in digital digestive healthcare. This combination creates a global company offering the most comprehensive digestive health portfolio currently addressing Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Irritable Bowel Disorder (IBD), Celiac Disease and Heartburn, with an exciting pipeline focused on Tinnitus, Pruritus, and Vulvodynia.
The acquisition of Cara Care is expected to accelerate Mahana’s market entry in Europe where the reimbursement of digital programs is outpacing the United States. Cara Care’s IBS prescription-based digital program is currently being prescribed, and reimbursed, to thousands of patients in Germany. The combined entity is now poised to expand its commercialization efforts beyond Germany to France and the United Kingdom as reimbursement of digital programs continues to improve across Europe.
“Cara Care has become the first and only digital therapy specialized in digestive diseases that is reimbursed by the German health system. Germany is a pioneer country in the world in applying regulation to allow healthcare professionals to prescribe and reimburse digital therapies, as long as they demonstrate a positive impact on patients.” comments Guillem Masferrer, Partner at BHH member Asabys, a Spanish venture capital firm and the company's main investor since 2019 through its fund Sabadell Asabys I. “We are very proud to see how Cara Care has become a valid solution for patients who do not have therapeutic alternatives and are very excited about the opportunity to be able to bring these therapies to a global market with the help of Mahana."
"The combination of Mahana and Cara Care is an incredible opportunity to bring together our complementary expertise in chronic digestive health conditions and create a one-of-a-kind global offering of digital programs across the Digestive, Hearing, Dermatology, and Women’s Health markets. The transaction will accelerate our mission of reaching the millions of patients suffering from these chronic conditions including through partnerships, such as our ongoing collaboration with Bayer,” said Simon Levy, CEO. “Our ability to pair our digital programs with conventional treatment options will improve overall outcomes, patient satisfaction and has the potential to greatly enhance the lifetime patient value for our consumer health and biopharmaceutical partners.”
“Cara Care is delighted to join the Mahana team to accelerate the expansion of our products within Germany and across other European markets. We see this as a great opportunity to leverage Mahana’s unique distribution and partnership model and to expand our compelling offering in Digestive Health to the US marketplace with minimal overlap,” said Jim Mapes, CEO of Cara Care.
The combined company operates across the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom with both FDA-cleared and digital wellness programs for IBS and Tinnitus currently prescribed or offered by thousands of healthcare providers and used by tens of thousands of patients worldwide, and an exciting pipeline to reach the millions of patients suffering from IBD, Heartburn, Celiac Disease, Pruritus and Vulvodynia. Mahana is backed by prominent investors including Asabys Partners, JAZZ Venture Partners, Lux Capital, Gurnet Point Capital, Main Street Advisors, KKCG.