Askel Healthcare

What Askel Healthcare does

Askel Healthcare Ltd is a Finnish medical technology company founded in 2017 and headquartered in Tampere, Finland, developing the COPLA® Cartilage implant for surgical repair of symptomatic, full-thickness cartilage and bone-cartilage lesions in the knee joints of adult patients. The COPLA® implant is a biodegradable polymer scaffold composed of collagen (CO) and polylactide (PLA), designed to enable immediate full weight-bearing after surgery—a key differentiator from existing cartilage repair methods that typically require partial weight-bearing periods. The implant degrades as new cartilage tissue forms, and its universal design allows treatment of lesions at various sizes and stages of degenerative joint disease using existing surgical instruments in a single procedure. The company operates in-house cleanroom manufacturing facilities in Tampere to maintain quality control over its patented production process.

The company targets orthopedic surgeons, sports medicine specialists, and hospitals/surgical centers performing knee cartilage repair procedures. Its customer base is concentrated in Europe (Finland, Estonia, Sweden) for current clinical trial activities, with planned expansion to the broader EU and US markets following CE mark and FDA approvals. The company has completed enrollment in a 20-patient first-in-human Pilot Clinical Trial across five hospitals in Finland, Estonia, and Sweden, and is preparing a pivotal trial of up to 250 patients to support regulatory submissions.

Askel Healthcare is pre-revenue and currently raising capital via a September 2025 public crowdfunding campaign on Invesdor (offering 3.82-10.66% equity at EUR 9.60 per share) toward a EUR 5 million financing target, with Cenitz as lead institutional investor. The company has secured FDA Breakthrough Device Designation and holds granted patents across 20 European countries with pending applications in the US and China. Upon regulatory approval, the company plans to commercialize COPLA® as an off-the-shelf, one-time-purchase medical device sold directly to hospitals and surgical centers, leveraging favorable production economics for affordable pricing.

Name

Askel Healthcare

Legal name

Askel Healthcare Ltd

Website

https://askelhealthcare.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Askel Healthcare is a Finnish medical device company developing COPLA®, a biodegradable polymer scaffold implant for surgical repair of symptomatic knee cartilage defects in adult patients. The investigational device is currently in clinical trials, targeting orthopedic surgeons and hospitals upon regulatory approval.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Orthopedic Medical Devices

NAICS

Surgical Appliance and Supplies Manufacturing (339113)

SIC

Orthopedic, Prosthetic & Surgical Appliances & Supplies (3842)

akta.pro primary industry

Cartilage, Bone & Musculoskeletal Regeneration (HLAAAGAH)

Keywords

• Cartilage repair implant
• Biodegradable polymer scaffold
• Knee cartilage repair
• Orthopedic medical devices
• Regenerative medicine implant

Headquarters

HQ city

Helsinki

HQ country

Finland

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. COPLA® Cartilage Implant Sales: Medical device sales model - the company plans to commercialize its COPLA® Cartilage implant globally after obtaining EU (CE) and US (FDA) market authorizations. Currently in pre-revenue clinical trial phase.
2. Off-the-shelf Product: The implant is an off-the-shelf product with favorable production economics to guarantee affordable pricing, sold directly to hospitals and surgical centers.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Askel Healthcare develops and manufactures the COPLA® Cartilage implant, a biodegradable polymer scaffold made of collagen (CO) and polylactide (PLA) for the surgical treatment of symptomatic, full-thickness cartilage and bone-cartilage lesions in the knee joints of adult patients. The implant is designed to enable immediate full and unrestricted weight-bearing after surgery and to support regeneration of high-quality cartilage tissue as it degrades.

Product overview

Askel Healthcare offers a single unified product: the COPLA® Cartilage implant. The name COPLA derives from collagen (CO) and polylactide (PLA), the two biodegradable polymers comprising the implant. This investigational medical device is designed for surgical knee cartilage repair, targeting adult patients with symptomatic full-thickness cartilage and bone-cartilage lesions. The company is currently in the clinical trial phase, having completed enrollment for a 20-patient Pilot Clinical Trial across Finland, Estonia, and Sweden. The COPLA® implant is not yet approved for commercial use in any country.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• COPLA® Cartilage implant: A biodegradable polymer scaffold implant for surgical treatment of knee cartilage defects, designed to enable immediate full weight-bearing after surgery and support natural cartilage regeneration.

Products and services

• COPLA® Cartilage implant A biodegradable polymer scaffold implant designed for the surgical treatment of symptomatic, full-thickness cartilage and bone-cartilage lesions in the knee joints of adult patients (18–50 years, ICRS grade III–IV). It is manufactured in-house in Tampere, Finland, using patented technology and enables immediate full weight-bearing after surgery while degrading as new cartilage tissue forms.

Quantifiable outcome

• All patients achieved full and unrestricted weight-bearing immediately after surgery and maintained this ability throughout the first six months
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• TerveystalocoreOthersFinland's largest private healthcare provider operating nearly 20 hospitals. Principal Investigator Dr. Teemu Paatela serves as coordinating investigator for the multicenter COPLA® Pilot Clinical Trial. Represents key hospital system partner for clinical development.
• MehiläinencoreOthersFinnish private healthcare provider. Principal Investigator Dr. Mikko Kirjavainen conducting COPLA® Pilot Clinical Trial at Töölö facility.
• Wellbeing Services County of Central FinlandcoreOthersFinnish public healthcare provider. Principal Investigator Dr. Heikki Nurmi conducting COPLA® Pilot Clinical Trial at Jyväskylä location.
• Tartu University HospitalcoreOthersEstonian university hospital. Principal Investigator Dr. Kaspar Tootsi conducting COPLA® Pilot Clinical Trial. Sub-investigators include Prof. Aare Märtson, MD, PhD.
• Sahlgrenska University HospitalcoreOthersSwedish university hospital in Mölndal. Principal Investigator Dr. Sebastian Concaro, MD, PhD, with Prof. Mats Brittberg as sub-investigator, conducting COPLA® Pilot Clinical Trial.
• TerveystalocoreOthersDr. Teemu Paatela serves as Chief Orthopaedic Surgeon and Director of Musculoskeletal Businesses at Terveystalo, Finland's largest private hospital chain. He is the coordinating principal investigator in the ongoing COPLA® Pilot Clinical Trial.
• Aspetar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine HospitalcoreOthersRenowned sports medicine hospital in Doha, Qatar. Dr. Emmanuel Papakostas (CAB member) and Konstantinos Epameinontidis (CAB member) work at Aspetar, providing clinical advisory expertise.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Episurf Medical: Offers patient-specific cartilage and osteochondral implants (Episealer) for focal knee lesions. Directly comparable indication and customer base; notably, Askel board member Patrick Jamnik is President of Episurf Medical.
• CartiHeal (Smith+Nephew): Developed Agili-C, a cell-free, off-the-shelf implant for cartilage and osteochondral lesions; acquired by Smith+Nephew in 2023. Closest technology analog to COPLA: a CE-marked, off-the-shelf scaffold for focal cartilage repair in the same patient population.
• Vericel: Commercializes MACI, an autologous cultured chondrocyte implant for knee cartilage repair. Direct competitor in the same indication (symptomatic full-thickness knee cartilage defects) and the closest US-listed analog for an acellular/scaffold cartilage repair entrant.
• Geistlich Pharma: Markets Chondro-Gide, a collagen matrix used in matrix-assisted autologous chondrocyte implantation (MACI-style procedures) for cartilage repair. Comparable acellular scaffold technology competing for the same surgical indication.
• Anika Therapeutics: Developer of HYALOFAST, a hyaluronic-acid-based acellular scaffold for cartilage repair, plus viscosupplementation products. Comparable as an acellular cartilage repair scaffold competitor targeting similar orthopedic surgeons and ICRS-graded lesions.

Broad incumbents

• Zimmer Biomet: Major orthopedic device manufacturer with sports medicine and knee preservation products, plus extensive US commercial infrastructure. Indirect competitor but a relevant comparator for US commercialization benchmarks.
• Stryker: Global orthopedic and sports medicine leader with extensive knee and cartilage procedure offerings. Competes for the same hospital budgets and orthopedic surgeon relationships across the same indications.
• Arthrex: Privately held leader in sports medicine and orthopedic soft-tissue/surgical solutions, with a broad cartilage repair product range. Comparable commercial motion (direct-to-surgeon) and an indirect product competitor for cartilage procedures.
• Smith+Nephew: Large orthopedic incumbent with a sports medicine and knee repair portfolio (including Regeneten, BioCartilage, and CartiHeal/Agili-C). Competes in the same OR channel and orthopedic surgeon call point but as part of a broader portfolio.

Emerging players

• TETEC Tissue Engineering Technologies: German tissue engineering company developing autologous cartilage cell therapies (e.g., chondrosphere/spherox). Comparable as an emerging European cartilage regeneration player targeting ICRS-graded knee lesions.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutu.be/RSZwLWwfwe8
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Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds7 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Askel Healthcare