Who Is CryoHoldco? Latin America’s Largest Cord Blood Bank

CryoHoldco is a stem cell bank holding company that is the market leader in Latin America and the fifth largest cord blood banks globally. CryoHoldco is also many times larger than any other stem cell bank in Latin America, with over 400,000 stem cell units in storage.

Cryoholdco’s Origin

Cryoholdco was created in 2015 with the purpose of forming the premier stem cell banking company in Latin America.

The first asset it acquired was Cryo-Cell Mexico, which coincidentally, was first stem cell bank formed in Latin America. Next, CryoHoldco acquired a controlling interest in a regional stem cell bank in Mexico in Q4 of 2015. In early 2016, it then acquired Stem Medicina Regenerativa, the largest stem cell bank in Colombia. It also added Criocord, a Peruvian cord blood bank, to its portfolio in July 2018.

Since its first investment into Cryo-Cell Mexico in mid-2015, CryoHoldco has been aggressively consolidating the Latin American market.

Today, Cryoholdco controls the following cord blood banking assets:

• Mexico

  • Cryo-Cell Mexico — the first stem cell bank in Latin America, acquired in 2015 when CryoHoldco was formed (brand with ~20+ years of operation prior to purchase).

  • BCU (Banco del Cordón Umbilical) — acquired in 2015; leader in cord blood collection focused on central Mexico.

  • BSCU (Banco de Sangre y Cordón Umbilical) — acquired in 2015; premium brand formerly part of Grupo Ángeles, now under the CryoHoldco portfolio.

  • DentCell — dental pulp stem cell storage subsidiary in Mexico acquired/rolled into the portfolio in 2015 alongside the other Mexican assets.

• Colombia

  • STEM Medicina Regenerativa — acquired early 2016; recognized as the largest regenerative medicine/cell bank in Colombia.

  • Redcord — acquired around the same expansion phase, now operating as CryoHoldco’s second Colombian cord blood bank.

• Peru

  • Criocord — acquired in 2018; one of the leading Peruvian cord blood banks integrated into CryoHoldco.

  • Lazo de Vida — also acquired around 2018 alongside Criocord as part of Peru expansion.

• Brazil

  • CordCell (CordCell Centro de Terapia Celular) — acquired in September 2020; one of CryoHoldco’s first entries into Brazil. Fusioni & Acquisizioni

  • CordVida — acquired in 2021; major Brazilian cord blood bank headquartered in São Paulo.

As a result of this expansion, CryoHoldco represents the largest stem cell banking operation in Latin America. The company initially featured two state-of-the art lab and storage facilities in Mexico and Colombia. Today, it also has labs and storage facilities across additioanly countries, including Brazil, Peru, and Argentina. Additionally,  it has a growing network of 10,000+ affiliated doctors and 100+ sales offices, and its companies are the market leaders within their country and offer services nationwide.

According to Cryoholdco leadership, the market must be consolidated so the larger companies can “increase their investment in technology, state –of- the-art storage facilities, participate in clinical trials, improve operating performance, and invest in educational programs with doctors and clients to convey the benefits of storing cord blood and tissue.”

For additional details on Cryoholdco, read our interview with its CFO, James Alexis Mendez.

To learn more about this evolving market sector, view the “Global Cord Blood and Tissue Banking Industry Report – Market Size, Segmentation, & Forecasts.”