Hi friend,

No money, no mission.

Regardless of your role or organisation, you need money to make an impact.

From individual researchers, all the way to public companies, capital is necessary. This capital can come from customers or grants, but for many, it will come from investors.

Raising money is not easy, especially in 2025.

In the coming months, I’ll be focusing more on this area, providing insights to help people at all stages raise the money they need for their mission. In today’s article, we take the first step in that journey, understanding more about the state of mental health capital markets in 2025.

How much capital is being invested, where, and on what terms?

How do private and public investors think about this category, and how do they evaluate companies?

I’ve been collecting data on this topic, and in this edition of The Hemingway Report I attempt to shed some light on these important questions.

We’ll cover;

• The state of private mental health markets: How much is being invested in mental health businesses? Across what stages? What are the average deal sizes? And who’s getting the capital?

• The state of public mental health markets: How are public companies performing, and how are investors responding to that performance? What do mental health valuations look like in 2025, and what impact will that have on the IPO market in 2026?

We have lots of data and charts to get into, so let’s get cracking…

The Key Takeaways:

Short on time? Here are the eight things you need to know about mental health capital markets in 2025.

1. Private markets hit a new bottom

   2025 is expected to finish with roughly $480M in venture funding for US mental health startups - down over 50% from 2024. Deal volume has collapsed to just 28 transactions in 2025 YTD, versus 81 in 2021.

2. But quality companies can still raise strong rounds. 

   For companies with strong fundamentals, capital remains available. In 2025, Series B rounds averaged $30M, and Series A rounds $14M. The bar is higher, and dilution might be greater, but the best companies - like Amae, Ampa, TownHome, Slingshot, Everbright, Limbic, Assured, Outro, and Sharp Performance - are still getting funded. More capital continues to enter the space - some mental health-specific investors are raising subsequent funds and new investors are entering the space - like Meridian, who launched the Innovations in Mental Health Fund and just this week, announced their first mental health investment (in Affiniti).

This article is for THR Pro members only