Stéphane Mac Millan is Co-Founder and CEO at Verley, a French biotech company pioneering precision fermentation for animal-free dairy proteins. The company recently raised 32 million euros in Series A funding and received FDA approval to enter the US market.

Stéphane studied Business Administration at ESCP Europe and worked at L'Oreal, served as a Lieutenant in the French Navy Commandos, and was CEO of Foodora France where he scaled the business and led it through Delivery Hero's IPO. He also worked in strategy consulting at McKinsey & Company.

Stéphane co-founded Verley (originally Bon Vivant) in 2021 with CTO Hélène Briand, winning the French iLab innovation competition in 2023. The company's patented functionalization technologies enable dairy proteins with 11% more leucine than native whey protein isolates.

Verley became the first company globally to receive FDA's No Questions Letter for functionalized precision fermentation dairy proteins in 2025. The company's FermWhey range reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 72%, water use by 81%, and land use by 99% compared to conventional dairy.

Verley's Series A round was led by Alven with participation from Blast, Bpifrance, Sofinnova, Sparkfood, and Founders Future. The company is expanding production capacity and entering the US market with B2B partnerships targeting high-protein beverages, shots, and yogurts.