Existing investor SoftBank returned to back a $9.5m funding round for the on-demand therapist service, which has now raised $13m in the past year.

US-based on-demand therapist service Talkspace raised $9.5m yesterday in a series A round co-led by telecommunications company SoftBank and venture capital firm Spark Capital.

VC firm Metamorphic Ventures and investment firm TheTime also participated in the round.

Talkspace provides an instant messaging platform through which patients can anonymously connect with licensed therapists to access mental healthcare for conditions such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder or anxiety.

The platform also enables couples to seek out therapy. To date, some 100,000 people…