Sava Raises $36 Million Series B Led by Ascensia to Build a Glucose Sensor That Skips the Fingerstick

Continuous glucose monitors have made life easier for people with diabetes, but most still require a fingerstick check before insulin is dosed. Sava, a London biosensor company, is building a sensor that aims to remove that step, and a strategic partner has now led its latest round.

Sava Technologies raised a $36 million Series B led by Ascensia Diabetes Care, a unit of PHC Holdings, which also made a strategic equity investment and signed an exclusive agreement to distribute Sava's microsensor, starting in Europe. Reports put total funding at about $68 million. Earlier rounds were an $8 million seed in June 2024 and a $19 million Series A in July 2025 led by Balderton Capital and Pentland Ventures. Other investors are listed in aggregator reports, but I could not confirm that list against the company's own release.

The Product and the Timeline

The sensor sits just beneath the skin and is designed to monitor glucose first and other biomarkers later. Sava says it is about ten times smaller than conventional continuous glucose monitors, which should reduce skin disruption. The company plans a pivotal clinical study this year and aims to win CE approval and launch within 18 to 24 months for use without routine blood glucose confirmation, subject to regulatory approval.

Sava was founded about seven years ago by Renato Circi and Rafaël Michali, both bioengineers trained at Imperial College London. The money will go toward scaling up manufacturing and reaching commercial readiness. These are company statements, and the product has not yet received regulatory approval.

Why a Distributor Leading the Round Matters

When the company that will sell your product also leads your financing, it signals confidence in the technology and a clear route to market. It also ties your early distribution to one partner, so founders in regulated hardware should weigh how much exclusivity they are trading for capital.

What This Means for Founders

For medical device founders, the lesson is that a strategic investor can fund the long, expensive path to approval while also supplying the sales channel. If you are raising a Series A or later round for a device, be ready to explain what each regulatory milestone costs and what it unlocks. Compare how a strategic's terms differ from those of a financial lead investor, especially on exclusivity, and understand the dilution each round brings before you sign.

Read the baseline mechanics of a limited partner if the term is new, or explore active capital on AngelLinx @ angellinx.ai/register.

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