Bioniq, a London-based health startup backed by football star Cristiano Ronaldo, has agreed to be acquired by US wellness group Herbalife.
Founded in 2019, Bioniq develops personalised health products and supplements. Its conscious product offering caught the attention of several well-known athletes turned investors, including Ronaldo’s former Manchester United teammate Diogo Dalot.
Herbalife, the California-headquartered dietary supplement group, has agreed to acquire the assets of Bioniq for $55m (£41.1m) in a deal that could rise to $150m (£112.3m) depending on certain performance metrics over the next five years.
“I founded Bioniq in 2019 with a vision to help people optimise their wellbeing through a science-driven approach to nutrition that incorporates biomarker and lifestyle data,” said Vadim Fedotov, founder and president of Bioniq.
“I am excited to join Herbalife with its global distributor network and commitment to advancing wellness at scale.”
Herbalife said it was interested in the deal to support its aim of transitioning to a more tech-enabled and data-driven platform. To that end the US firm recently also acquired Pro2col and Link BioSciences.
“The future of health and wellness is becoming more personalised and informed by data,” said Herbalife chief executive Stephan Gratziani.
“By combining Bioniq’s personalised supplement technology with Pro2col and the power of our global distributor network, we are expanding our ability to deliver personalised wellness at global scale.”