Healthcare startup Aledade could be an important proof point for the public markets on the viability of value-based care enablement technologies, bankers and investors told BI.

Founded in 2014 by former national coordinator for health IT Dr. Farzad Mostashari, Aledade sells data-driven software to independent primary care practices to help them deliver value-based care, improving patient outcomes while lowering costs. The company has steadily grown its presence across Medicare, Medicaid, and commercial insurance programs, now working with over 2,400 practices to support 3 million patients.

To date, Aledade has raised about $660 million in funding from investors like Lightspeed Venture Partners and Venrock, most recently grabbing a $260 million Series F round in June 2023. The company didn't share its valuation at the time.

Aledade said in 2022 that it had been bringing in more earnings than losses, before subtracting for expenses like taxes, for the past two years. In 2023, after its Series F raise, the company said it brought in $475 million in revenue the previous year. Its high revenue and apparent profitability could help position the company for an IPO, although the company will have to differentiate itself from prior value-based care tech listings such as Agilon Health and Privia Health, which have seen their shares decline on the public markets since their 2021 IPOs.

"Aledade is focused on building our business and doing what is good for patients, practices and society, as well as for shareholders, consistent with our public benefit mission. An initial public offering in the future is always possible, based on timing, conditions and financial needs," said Aledade senior VP of communications Julie Bataille in a statement to BI. "However, we don't comment on specific plans and remain focused on the important work of advancing efforts to support independent primary care organizations and their success in value-based care."

Health data startup Datavant has been deal hunting this year, and its acquisition spree could hint at a coming IPO.

Datavant, which manages patient data exchanges between providers, payers, and life sciences organizations, spun out of Vivek Ramaswamy's Roivant Sciences in 2017. Datavant last shared its valuation when it merged with Ciox Health in June 2021 in a $7 billion deal, giving it the highest valuation of the startups on this list.

In the past year, Datavant has made four acquisitions, most recently buying health records retrieval company Ontellus in June. Datavant previous acquired venture-backed real-world-evidence startup Aetion in May, and picked up data privacy organization Trace Data and two data analytics products from healthcare AI startup Apixio in September.

Private equity firm New Mountain Capital is Datavant's controlling shareholder. Flare Capital Partners' Parth Desai told Business Insider in December that he expects private-equity-backed healthcare companies to make tuck-in acquisitions in 2025 as they look ahead to potential IPOs in 2026.

"With New Mountain Capital's support as a longtime shareholder that is bullish on our business, we are fortunate to have flexibility as we continue to grow and diversify for our clients," said Datavant CEO Kyle Armbrester in an email to BI. "If market conditions are right, and there's a need for cash to continue to grow the business, a public offering is a potential option we would consider in the future."

Founded in 2015, Lyra Health is the highest valued startup in mental health. The company was last valued at $5.58 billion in January 2022, when it raised $235 million in Series G funding.

The startup provides mental health services to employers like Morgan Stanley and Zoom, aiming to help clients save thousands of dollars in healthcare claims with its evidence-based treatment. Newly public Hinge Health and Omada Health also contract with employers with similar cost-cutting aims, and their public market debuts could bring Lyra's IPO prospects into focus.

In December, Lyra Health said its cofounder, David Ebersman, would transition from the role of CEO to board chairman following the death of his son in 2024. Jennifer Schulz, most recently the CEO of Experian's North American division, joined Lyra as its new CEO.

Bankers said Schulz's experience in a leadership role at publicly traded Experian could be a boon to Lyra, though the startup may wait until she's further settled in the role to accelerate IPO plans.

Lyra has raised more than $900 million in funding to date from investors including Dragoneer, Coatue, and Salesforce Ventures.

Lyra declined to comment for this story.

Medline is a long-standing healthcare company, not a startup. But its IPO could make waves across the industry.

Medline was founded in 1966 to manufacture and sell medical supplies to hospitals and clinics. In December, it said it had confidentially filed its S-1 to go public.

Bankers told BI that Medline's IPO would be an important example for the markets of private equity buying a healthcare company and taking it public at a premium. Blackstone, Carlyle, and Hellman & Friedman acquired Medline in 2021 for $34 billion. Reuters reported in December that Medline's IPO could raise over $5 billion and value the company at up to $50 billion.

However, President Donald Trump's shifting tariffs policies could force Medline to delay its public market debut further. Robert Stowe, head of Americas equity capital markets at Barclays, told BI in June that public investors are sensitive to businesses that could be exposed to tariffs. Medline manufactures many products in China, which has been aggressively targeted by Trump's tariff proposals.

Medline didn't respond to requests for comment for this story.

Maven, which provides care for women and families through employers and health plans, could provide critical evidence for the market viability of women's health companies with a potential IPO.

Founded in 2014, Maven is backed by leading VC firms including General Catalyst, Sequoia, and Oak HC/FT. The company last raised $125 million in Series F funding in October, led by the private equity firm StepStone Group at a $1.7 billion valuation. The raise boosted Maven's total funding to over $425 million.

The company now says it works with over 2,000 employers and health plans to provide fertility benefits, maternity care, menopause support, and related care.

Investors previously told BI that Maven's IPO, if successful, could help validate the women's health sector for investors and pave the way for more women's health startups to raise funding and find exits.

Maven's strongest signal of its IPO ambitions can be found in its C-Suite. In the first half of the year, the company hired multiple executives with experience guiding companies through public listings.

BI reported in October that Maven let go of its chief financial officer to bring in a new CFO with public market experience. The company said in June it had hired Katie Rooney as its CFO, who previously served as CFO and COO at Alight Solutions through its divestiture from Blackstone-owned Aon Hewitt and its public listing in 2021 via SPAC merger.

Maven also said it had hired a new chief commercial officer, chief legal and administrative officer, and chief communications officer. Maven's new chief legal and administrative officer, Susan Stick, most recently served as general counsel at Life360, leading the company through its 2024 IPO.

Maven declined to comment for this story.

Spring Health has long sought to separate itself from the pack with its AI-powered approach to precision mental healthcare.

Spring Health's algorithms help tailor care plans to an individual's needs, with various types of care provided through its app, such as coaching therapy, psychiatry, and meditation exercises. The company sells its services to employers including Microsoft, Pfizer, and the Coca-Cola Company, as well as health plans.

The Tiger Global-backed startup raised $100 million in Series E funding in July 2024 at a $3.3 billion valuation. According to PitchBook, Spring Health has raised about $466 million since its 2016 founding.

As AI takes off in digital health, Spring says it's embedded AI in its electronic health record system, its patient app, and its real-time analytics for employers. The startup has also expanded the range of its mental health services over the years, most recently digging deeper into pediatric care and support for substance use disorders.

Per Rock Health, mental health was the top-funded clinical indication in 2024 for the sixth year straight, with mental health startups bringing in $1.4 billion last year. Despite high fundraising levels, however, the sector hasn't seen an IPO since 2021. Bankers said Spring Health and Lyra Health are consistently discussed as the most likely two candidates for the next mental health public listings.

Spring Health didn't respond to requests for comment for this story.

Transcarent contracts with employers to provide health navigation and virtual care to employees. The startup looks a lot closer to an exit after a big acquisition earlier this year.

The startup bought the public health benefits company Accolade in a $621 million deal that closed in April. The acquisition looks to have significantly increased Transcarent's customer base and thus made a big contribution to its top line — before the Transcarent deal, Accolade said it contracted with over 1,400 employers and health plans, and the company reported $414 million in revenue in the fiscal year 2024. Now, with Accolade on board, Transcarent says it works with over 1,700 employers and health plans. Transcarent hasn't publicly shared its revenue.

The Accolade acquisition was financed by Transcarent investors including General Catalyst and CEO Glen Tullman's 62 Ventures, cash on Transcarent's balance sheet, and debt provided by JP Morgan. Transcarent has raised about $450 million since its 2020 founding, including $126 million in a Series D funding round in May 2024 at a $2.2 billion valuation.

Tullman has by far the most experience with taking companies public of the CEOs on this list. Before Transcarent, he led three companies through public listings — Livongo, Allscripts, and Enterprise Systems. His success with Livongo, the diabetes care company he founded, stands out as a rare example of blockbuster digital health returns; Livongo went public in 2019 at a $2.5 billion valuation, before being acquired by Teladoc the next year for $18.5 billion, at the time the biggest deal ever in the digital health market.

That experience could set Transcarent up to pursue an IPO when market conditions look favorable. Tullman told MedCity News in May 2024 that he had "no interest" in selling the company, but would consider an IPO in the future.

Transcarent will have to separate itself from previous care navigation IPOs, however, including Health Catalyst, whose stock has declined more than 85% since its 2019 IPO. It'll also need to contend with Accolade's cash burn, since the health benefits company reported a net loss of $100 million in the fiscal year 2024.

In a statement to BI, Tullman said Transcarent is focused on integrating its solutions to bring its AI-powered platform, called WayFinding, to more members and employers to make healthcare more accessible and affordable.

"At Transcarent, our priority is meeting the needs of our Members and delivering measurable results for our clients. If we do those things well, the rest will follow," Tullman said.

Omada Health's June IPO could set up diabetes care peer Virta Health to follow in its footsteps.

Founded in 2014, Virta Health made its name in virtual diabetes care, helping patients reverse type 2 diabetes through personalized, low-carb nutrition plans. It's expanding quickly into obesity treatment and added GLP-1 prescriptions like Ozempic for weight loss in January. The company previously prescribed GLP-1s only for diabetes.

CEO Sami Inkinen told Business Insider in January that Virta was bringing in over $100 million in annual recurring revenue, up 60% from the year before. He said he expected even faster growth in 2025, driven by surging demand for Virta's weight-loss care.

"An IPO is the next milestone for us," Inkinen said at the time. He declined to provide details on Virta's potential IPO timing, but said the company wants to be profitable before it braves the public markets.

Virta was last valued at $2 billion in 2021, when it raised $133 million in Series E funding led by Tiger Global. Inkinen said in January that Virta would be profitable by the end of 2025.

In a conversation with BI at the end of June, Inkinen declined to share specifics about a potential Virta IPO or a likely timeline for its public listing. However, he said it's always been his plan for Virta to be an independent public company, adding that Virta is tracking towards that goal.

Inkinen said Virta's growth rate is accelerating and that the company is ahead of its financial targets for the year. He's not stressing about timing the market, he said.

"The very best investor relations is fantastic financials. If you have those as a company, that's the best marketing before IPO, and for the IPO and beyond. Build a great business, and the rest will take care of itself," he said.

Zelis was started 30 years ago under the name Stratose, later merging with GlobalCare and Pay-Plus Solutions to create Zelis Healthcare. The company now sells healthtech software to payers and providers to manage medical claims and process electronic payments.

Bankers told Business Insider that Zelis's business is stable with strong economics that could position it well for an IPO.

Zelis's profile isn't too dissimilar from Waystar, a private-equity-backed healthcare payments company that went public in June 2024 with an initial market cap of about $3.5 billion. Since then, Waystar's stock has risen about 88%, and as of late June, the company boasts a $6.7 billion market cap. That success could set Zelis up to follow in Waystar's footsteps.

Zelis announced it had sold a minority stake for an undisclosed price in December, led by Mubadala Capital and including Norwest and HarbourVest. The recent capital raise could push Zelis's IPO back if the company doesn't see a significant financial benefit to going public, bankers said.

Zelis declined to comment for this story.

Venture capital and private equity firm Insight Partners owns the largest stake in Hinge Health with about 12.3 million shares, or 13.7% of the company.

The firm led Hinge Health's $26 million Series B fundraise in 2018. Teddie Wardi, a managing director at Insight Partners, has served on Hinge Health's board of directors since the firm's investment.

Insight Partners later participated in Hinge Health's Series C and D rounds in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

Insight Partners sold 1.25 million shares in Hinge Health's IPO, which at the $32 IPO price would have brought in $40 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, the firm's remaining stake is worth about $433 million.

Daniel Perez's first encounter with physical therapy came after a bike crash when he was 13 years old, which forced him to undergo three surgeries and 12 months of rehabilitation.

He started Hinge Health alongside executive chairman Gabriel Mecklenburg to improve the accessibility of musculoskeletal care and reduce the specialty's reliance on surgeries and opioids.

Hinge Health is Perez and Mecklenburg's third venture, after the Oxbridge Biotech Roundtable, which aimed to bridge the gap between life sciences academia and markets, and Marblar, a platform designed to generate commercial uses for scientific discoveries.

Perez is Hinge Health's largest individual shareholder. He owns about 10.6 million shares, or 13.1% of the company. He didn't sell any shares in the IPO.

At the $39.25 market debut price, his stake is worth about $414 million.

Atomico is a London-based venture firm started in 2006 by Skype cofounder Niklas Zennström. The firm led Hinge Health's $8 million Series A in 2017, when the startup was based in London. (Hinge Health moved its headquarters to San Francisco the same year.)

Atomico later participated in Hinge Health's Series B, C, and D funding rounds.

Atomico owns about 7.9 million shares, or 9.8% of the company. The firm sold 1,497,546 shares in the IPO, which at the IPO price of $32 would have brought in about $48 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, the firm's remaining stake is worth about $309 million.

Investment firm Tiger Global first backed Hinge Health in 2021, co-leading its $300 million Series D alongside Coatue Management. In October of that year, Tiger Global also co-led the company's $400 million Series E, also alongside Coatue.

The $400 million Series E round boosted Hinge Health to the $6.2 billion valuation that Hinge Health was forced to slash in its IPO. Tiger Global has drawn criticism in recent years for backing startups at extraordinarily high valuations, particularly during 2021's venture investment peak.

Tiger Global owns about 5.3 million shares, or 6.5% of the company. The firm sold 258,183 shares in the IPO, which at the IPO price of $32 would have brought in about $8.3 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, the firm's remaining stake is worth about $207 million.

New York-based Coatue Management invests across all private and public fundraising stages, with venture capital, private equity, and hedge fund management units. The firm co-led Hinge Health's $300 million Series D alongside Tiger Global in January 2021, then co-led its $400 million Series E with Tiger Global that October.

Hinge Health's S-1 filing notes that Coatue will sell $50 million in Series E preferred shares back to the company immediately before Hinge's IPO. That agreement was created in February, per the filing. The company didn't share a reason for the stock repurchase.

Coatue owns about 4.7 million shares of common stock, or 5.8% of the company. The firm didn't sell any shares in the IPO.

At the $39.25 market debut price, the firm's stake is worth about $185 million.

San Francisco-based 11.2 Capital backs early-stage tech startups and wrote one of the first checks into Hinge Health.

The firm led Hinge Health's seed round in 2016, and invested further in its Series A, B, C, and D rounds, according to the firm.

11.2 Capital owns about 4.3 million shares, or 5.4% of Hinge Health. The firm sold 788,691 shares in the IPO, which at the IPO price of $32 would have brought in about $25 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, the firm's remaining stake is worth about $169 million.

Bessemer Venture Partners backs early-stage and growth-stage startups through venture and private equity investments. The firm has more than 300 companies in its portfolio, according to its website.

Bessemer led Hinge Health's $90 million Series C in February 2020. Bessemer partner Elliott Robinson has served on Hinge Health's board of directors since that round.

The firm also participated in Hinge Health's $300 million Series D round in January 2021.

Bessemer Venture Partners owns about 4.1 million shares, or 5.1% of the company. The firm sold 725,066 shares in the IPO, which at the IPO price of $32 would have brought in about $24 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, its remaining stake is worth about $161 million.

Gabriel Mecklenburg cofounded Hinge Health alongside Perez, personally inspired by the months of physical therapy he completed after tearing his ACL in a judo sparring session.

Mecklenburg served as the company's COO for six years. It was a familiar role for him; he'd held the COO title at the two companies he started with Perez before Hinge Health, Oxbridge Biotech Roundtable and Marblar.

In 2021, he transitioned to his current role of executive chairman. In addition to his work with Hinge Health, he's served on the board of addiction care startup Pelago since 2022.

Mecklenburg owns about 4 million shares, or 4.9% of the company. He did not sell any shares in the IPO.

At the $39.25 market debut price, his stake is worth about $158 million.

IP2IPO, named IP2IPO Portfolio LP in Hinge Health's S-1, specializes in moving innovative technologies, talent, and intellectual property from academic institutions to commercial industries.

Both Perez and Mecklenburg stepped away from pursuing higher education degrees to build Hinge Health. Perez was taking a leave of absence from a Ph.D. program in biochemistry at the University of Oxford, while Mecklenburg was researching musculoskeletal regenerative medicine at Imperial College London.

IP2IPO is a subsidiary of IP Group, a London-based firm that backs breakthrough science and tech companies. IP Group says it's the founding investor in Hinge Health.

The firm told BI it actually invested in Marblar, Perez and Mecklenburg's previous startup, back in 2012. That investment rolled over into Hinge Health.

"As the UK's leading investor in university spinouts, we met Dan whilst he was in Oxford, working on brilliant ideas and showing real entrepreneurial spirit and tenacity," said Robert Trezona, a partner at IP Group. He said IP Group invested around £1 million, or about $1.12 million at the time, shortly after meeting Perez.

IP2IPO owns about 1.1 million shares, or 1.3% of the company. The firm sold about 47,000 shares in the IPO, which at the IPO price of $32 would have brought in about $1.5 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, its remaining stake would be worth about $42 million.

Early-stage VC firm Heuristic Capital was founded in 2016, and first invested in Hinge Health's seed round that same year.

The Santa Clara, California-based firm then invested in Hinge Health's four subsequent raises, from Hinge Health's Series A to its Series D. Heuristic Capital told BI that the Hinge Health team worked out of the firm's San Francisco office in the startup's early days, moving into an independent office in the Bay Area after successfully closing a Series A round.

The firm owns about 1 million shares of Hinge Health, or 1.3% of the company. It sold 194,305 shares in the IPO, which at the initial share price of $32 would have brought in about $6.2 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, its remaining stake would be worth about $40 million.

Longtime digital health executive Jim Pursley joined Hinge Health as its president in 2021. He'd previously worked with the Hinge Health team as an advisor from 2017 to 2019.

Pursley came to Hinge Health from Livongo, where he spent six years as the diabetes company's chief commercial officer through its 2019 IPO. He left the company shortly after Livongo announced its $18.5 billion acquisition by Teladoc in 2020.

He also held leadership roles at GE Healthcare and Care Innovations, a joint venture between Intel and GE.

In addition to his role at Hinge Health, he serves as an independent board member at digital therapeutics company Bodyport.

Pursley owns about 604,665 shares. He did not sell any shares in the IPO.

At the $39.25 market debut price, his stake is worth about $24 million.

The Vertical Group, named in Hinge Health's S-1 as Vertical GP-8, is a Basking Ridge, New Jersey-based firm that invests in healthcare and biotech companies. Vertical invested in Hinge Health's seed and Series A funding rounds, according to the firm.

The firm told BI that it previously sold a portion of its Hinge Health shares in a secondary transaction in 2021, at $77 a share, and another portion in a 2023 secondary sale, at $36 a share.

Vertical is also an investor in diabetes care startup Omada Health, according to the firm's website. Omada is the only other digital health company to file to go public so far this year.

Vertical GP-8 owns 554,919 shares. The firm sold about 106,000 shares in the IPO, which at the IPO price of $32 would have brought in about $3.4 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, the firm's remaining stake is worth about $22 million.

Jon Reynolds is the cofounder and former CEO of SwiftKey, the AI-powered keyboard app acquired by Microsoft in 2016. He told BI he first backed Hinge Health that same year, participating in the startup's seed and seed extension funding rounds.

Reynolds owned about 360,175 shares. He sold 68,605 shares in the IPO, which at the IPO price of $32 would have brought in about $2.2 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, his remaining stake is worth about $14 million.

San Francisco-based Industry Ventures makes VC bets using flexible capital structures, including secondary transactions and buyouts.

Hinge Health has never publicly announced a secondary transaction made by Industry Ventures. Hinge Health's S-1 specifies that Industry Ventures invested in the company through its Secondary IX fund, which the firm announced in March 2021. Industry Ventures didn't respond to a request for comment from BI.

Industry Ventures owns 307,259 shares. The firm sold 58,526 shares in the IPO, which at the initial share price of $32 would have brought in about $1.9 million.

At the $39.25 market debut price, its remaining stake is worth about $12 million.

Serial CFO James Budge joined Hinge Health as its finance chief in 2023.

According to his LinkedIn, he's been the CFO of at least eight other companies, spanning industries from workforce software to entertainment tech.

He's also served on the board of directors of healthtech company Shadowbox since 2022.

Budge owns 172,241 shares. He did not sell any shares in the IPO.

At the $39.25 market debut price, his stake is worth about $6.8 million.

Kristina Leslie joined Hinge Health's board of directors in May 2024 as its audit chair.

Leslie, the former CFO of Dreamworks Animation, has spent nearly two decades serving on various company boards, including Glassdoor, CVB Financial Corp., and Rover. According to her LinkedIn, she currently sits on the boards of Sunstone Hotel Investors and Justworks and chairs the board of directors of Blue Shield of California.

Leslie owns 8,750 shares. She did not sell any shares in the IPO.

At the $39.25 market debut price, her stake is worth about $343,000.