Sting Free AB has received a pre-money valuation of SEK 27 million (USD 3.1 million). Investors include Curt Enzell, inventor of the snus pouch and former head of research at Tobaksbolaget (Swedish Match), according to a company press release.

StingFree AB has patent approvals in the dominant markets US and Europe for its innovation that prevents the familiar stinging sensation on the gum from snus and nicotine pouch consumption (also see “An achievement of a lifetime”, TJI 01/2021). The technology is applicable to both snus and tobacco-free nicotine pouches and has already been successfully produced in prototype series with industrial and unmodified snus packaging machines. Swedish Match has signed a non-exclusive license agreement for the new technology and several other Nordic and foreign producers are expected to do the same soon, the press release said.
“The capital injection from the ownership dispersion enables the company to requisition national patents in about 40 countries, including all countries in Europe, as well as a capital base for coming industrial production. We are very happy that so many prominent people and companies have chosen to invest in Sting Free AB”, says the company's CEO and founder Bengt Wiberg.
"I invented portion snus, as people often find it unhygienic and less appealing to use loose snus. Sting Free AB's innovation can make it easier for many to switch to snus, as the burning sensation often constitutes an obstacle for smokers to convert to snus," says Enzell.