Lygos Funding, Investors & Competitors

Lygos has raised $204M across 5 funding rounds, most recently a $160M undisclosed-stage round in April 2022.

See full Lygos profile

Last Lygos funding round

$160M

Undisclosed stage · Apr 2022

Cumulative funding Lygos raised

$204M

across 5 funding rounds

Key investors in Lygos

  • Y Combinator
  • First Round Capital
  • IA Ventures
  • OS Fund
  • Four Cities Capital
  • Fifty Years
  • LG Technology Ventures
  • Vast Ventures

Lygos Overview

About Lygos

Lygos is an Emeryville-based synthetic biology company producing bio-based specialty chemicals. It manufactures malonic acid and other performance polymers for applications in agriculture, personal care, and home care products. Lygos operates a commercial-scale fermentation facility in the US and partners with brands to replace petroleum-derived chemicals. Founded in 2013, the company has scaled production through precision fermentation technology licensed from universities.


Founded

2011

HQ

United StatesSan Francisco, CA

Website

lygos.com

Status

Privately held

Customer focus

B2B

Revenue model

Product sales

Sectors

Lygos Funding History

Lygos has raised a total of $204M across 5 funding rounds.

Lygos' first fundraising round was a $13M Series A in December 2016. The most recent completed round was a $160M undisclosed-stage round in April 2022.

Lygos funding rounds

Lygos funding rounds
DateStageInvestorsRaisedDeal Summary
Apr 2022Undisclosed stage-$160MLygos develops microbial-based manufacturing solutions for sustainable production of organic acids like malonic acid, replacing petrochemical alternatives with lower environmental impact. The company, based in Emeryville, CA, had raised funding across multiple rounds including a $13M Series A in December 2016 led by First Round Capital, IA Ventures, OS Fund, and Vast Ventures; a $15.5M Series B in July 2018 from First Round and IA Ventures; and a $5M Series B extension in January 2019 from LG Technology Ventures. Total funding across rounds reached approximately $44M to $50M by sources. Around April 2022, Lygos announced a merger with publicly listed biodegradable product manufacturer Flexible Solutions International, supported by $160M in convertible note financing from unnamed investors. This deal positioned Lygos to leverage its biological engineering platform for bio-monomers amid growing demand for sustainable chemicals. Lygos attracted over 25 investors including venture capital firms, private equity, strategic partners like LG and CJ CheilJedang, and angels. The company remained active post-merger announcement, focusing on biotech applications in specialty chemicals.
Sep 2019Series B-$5MLygos is a biotechnology company developing microbial-based manufacturing solutions for bio-based chemicals like malonic acid to replace petrochemical products. The company focuses on advanced biotechnology and computer science to create new biology-based products with lower environmental impact. Around late 2019, Lygos completed a corporate minority round of $5M on September 16, 2019. Earlier Series B financings included $15.5M on July 19, 2018 led by IA Ventures and First Round Capital with participation from Y Combinator Continuity Fund and OS Fund, and $5M on January 23, 2019 from LG Technology Ventures. Total equity raised across rounds reached approximately $40M by 2018, later reported as over $200M across 12 rounds including a $160M convertible note in 2022.
Jan 2019Series BLG Technology Ventures (lead)$10MLygos is a biotechnology company focused on producing specialty chemicals through synthetic biology, converting non-food biomass into high-value compounds such as malonic acid used in pharmaceuticals, flavors, and fragrances, as an alternative to petroleum-based production. On January 23, 2019, LG Technology Ventures, the investment arm of South Korea's LG Group, invested $5 million in Lygos's Series B financing round. At the time of the investment, Lygos had raised over $41 million in total equity financing across multiple rounds, plus more than $10 million in non-equity government funding from the U.S. Departments of Energy and Agriculture and the National Science Foundation. The investment reflected LG Technology Ventures' interest in Lygos's potential to introduce more sustainable, non-toxic production processes to the consumer electronics industry and other large-scale manufacturing sectors traditionally reliant on toxic petrotechnology processes.
Jul 2018Series BFirst Round Capital (lead); IA Ventures (lead); Y Combinator; Fifty Years; OS Fund$16MLygos raised $15.5 million in a Series B funding round on July 19, 2018, led by IA Ventures with participation from First Round Capital, OS Fund, and Y Combinator. The round followed a $13 million Series A in December 2016 backed by Fifty Years, First Round Capital, IA Ventures, OS Fund, Vast Ventures, and Y Combinator. Lygos develops a full-stack biological engineering platform focused on sustainable, bio-based specialty chemicals like organic acids to replace traditional petroleum-derived alternatives.
Dec 2016Series AIA Ventures (lead); OS Fund (lead); First Round Capital; Y Combinator; Four Cities Capital; Vast Ventures; #Angels$13MLygos, a synthetic biology startup based in Berkeley, California, engineers microbes to convert low-cost sugars into high-value specialty chemicals, targeting the oil-based chemical industry with sustainable, bio-based alternatives. The company develops products like Bio-Malonic Acid using a platform that combines software, computational modeling, microbe engineering, and deep learning for faster, safer production without fossil fuels or environmental degradation. On December 13, 2016, Lygos closed a $13 million Series A financing round led by IA Ventures and OS Fund, with participation from First Round Capital, Y Combinator Continuity Fund, Fifty Years, Vast Ventures, and angel investors including Louis Beryl. The funding supports team expansion, manufacturing and quality control infrastructure, and innovation for new microbial products. At the time, Lygos was delivering metric ton quantities of Bio-Malonic Acid to customers and advancing production of malic acid for electronics manufacturing. Lygos originated from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory technology and positions itself as a leader in sustainable chemical production, offering cost and quality advantages over petrochemical methods.

Who has invested in Lygos?

9 investors have backed Lygos across its funding rounds, including Y Combinator, First Round Capital, IA Ventures, OS Fund, Four Cities Capital and Fifty Years.

Lead investors include LG Technology Ventures, First Round Capital, IA Ventures and OS Fund.


Lygos Investors

Investors in Lygos by funding rounds participated
InvestorHQRoundsRoleFirst check
First Round CapitalUnited StatesPhiladelphia, PA2LeadDec 2016
Y CombinatorUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA2ParticipantDec 2016
IA VenturesUnited StatesUnited States2LeadDec 2016
OS FundUnited StatesChicago, IL2LeadDec 2016
LG Technology VenturesUnited StatesSan Jose, CA1LeadJan 2019
Four Cities CapitalUnited StatesBoston, MA1ParticipantDec 2016
Fifty YearsUnited StatesSan Francisco, CA1ParticipantJul 2018

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Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples

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Acquisitions by Lygos

Lygos has acquired 1 company to date.

Last acquisition by Lygos was on January 15th 2020. Lygos acquired Librede for undisclosed valuation.


Latest Acquisitions by Lygos

Librede
Description
Librede Inc. is a Boston-based biotechnology firm developing biosynthetic platforms for therapeutics. It engineers microbial systems to produce endocannabinoid modulators and other molecules, targeting pain management and inflammation. The platform utilizes synthetic biology for scalable manufacturing of lipid signaling compounds.
HQ CountryUnited States
HQ City
San Diego, CA
Deal Date15 Jan 2020
Valuationundisclosed
EV/Revenue
EV/EBITDA

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Lygos Competitors

Lygos competitors include listed companies like Linde, Sherwin-Williams, Ecolab and Shin-Etsu, and private ones like Cepsa and Ramcharan.

Public and private companies comparable to Lygos
CompanyHQStatusRevenueEBITDAValuationRevenue Multiple
LindeUnited StatesUnited StatesPublicly listed$34B$13B$211B6.6x
Sherwin-WilliamsUnited StatesUnited StatesPublicly listed$24B$4.5B$78B3.7x
EcolabUnited StatesUnited StatesPublicly listed$16B$3.8B$76B4.9x
Shin-EtsuJapanJapanPublicly listed$17B$5.7B$67B3.5x
CepsaSpainMadridPrivate--$12B-
RamcharanIndiaChennaiPrivate--$9B-

Lygos Public Comps

Lygos is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Linde, Sherwin-Williams, Ecolab, Shin-Etsu, Air Products, Nan Ya Plastics, BASF, SABIC, Givaudan and Sika.

Last FYEV/RevenueEV/EBITDA
RevenueEBITDALast FYLTM2027ELast FYLTM2027E
Linde$34B$13B6.9x6.6x18.3x16.9x
Sherwin-Williams$24B$4.5B3.9x3.7x20.5x19.1x
Ecolab$16B$3.8B5.3x4.9x22.6x20.0x
Shin-Etsu$17B$5.7B3.6x3.5x10.3x10.1x
Air Products$12B$1.3B6.9x6.6x62.5x15.3x
Nan Ya Plastics$8.2B$986M7.6x6.2x62.8x28.3x
BASF$69B$8.2B1.1x1.0x8.9x8.6x
SABIC$31B$3.9B1.5x1.6x11.7x10.2x

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Common questions about Lygos

When was Lygos founded?Lygos was founded in 2011.
Where is Lygos headquartered?Lygos is headquartered in San Francisco, CA, United States.
Is Lygos publicly listed?No, Lygos is a private, VC-backed company.
How much funding has Lygos raised?Lygos has raised $204M across 5 funding rounds.
What was Lygos' last funding round?Lygos' last funding round was a $160M undisclosed-stage round in April 2022.
Who are Lygos' investors?Lygos' investors include First Round Capital, Y Combinator, IA Ventures, OS Fund, LG Technology Ventures, Four Cities Capital, Fifty Years, Vast Ventures and #Angels.
Which companies are comparable to Lygos?Companies comparable to Lygos include Linde, Sherwin-Williams, Ecolab, Shin-Etsu, Cepsa and Ramcharan.
How many companies has Lygos acquired?Lygos has acquired 1 company, including Librede.

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