Cedar raises $102mn in Series C funding led by Andreessen Horowitz

By Pavithra R

Patient engagement and FinTech company Cedar has announced that it has raised more than $102mn in Series C funding led by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. The FinTech also announced its new partnership with Novant Health, a North Carolina-based healthcare system, to deliver a personalised financial experience for Novant Health patients.

Both announcements emphasise the company’s growth strategy and affirm the vital need for transforming the U.S. healthcare system’s approach to patient financial engagement. Cedar is planning to use the funding to expand its reach and to accelerate product innovation and expansion. The investment includes $77M in venture capital and $25M from JP Morgan in venture debt. The new investment brought the company’s total finance to $157M to date.

The funding round saw participation from Kaiser Permanente and individual angel investors including Jerod Mayo, linebacker coach for the New England Patriots, Jeff Vacirca, MD, FACP and CEO of New York Cancer & Blood Specialists, as well as Cedar’s current investors including Kinnevik, Thrive Capital, Lakestar and Founders Fund. Scott Kupor, Andreessen Horowitz Managing Partner, will also join Cedar’s board of directors.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has put a spotlight on many of the inefficiencies and archaic processes across our current healthcare system which has, in turn, driven an increase in the adoption of platforms like Cedar’s among healthcare providers. Through this round of funding and our new partnership with Novant Health, Cedar’s patient engagement and payment technology platform will be able to offer an improved experience for more patients with simplified and personalised digital engagement strategies and payment support options. We’re very pleased with this strong show of support from our investors and partners and look forward to further enhancing our platform for patients and providers,” said Florian Otto, CEO and co-founder of Cedar.

Under the partnership,  Novant will roll out Cedar’s patient engagement and payment technology platform to modernisepatients’ payment experience across the network. The collaboration also expects to advance and accelerate key innovation initiatives that extend further into the pre-visit patient digital engagement.

“At Novant Health, we are always looking at how we can implement new technology to create a world-class consumer experience for our patients. By selecting Cedar as an innovation partner to transform our payment process, we are committed to using technology to make health care costs and billing more understandable, personalised and convenient,” said Geoffrey Gardner, senior vice president of operational finance and revenue cycle at Novant Health.

Founded in 2016, Cedar provides smart ways for hospitals, health systems and medical groups to manage the patient payment ecosystem.