Bumble Reportedly in Talks to Go Private at a Valuation of About $1bn
Ithaca Holdings is in advanced talks to buy the dating app, whose shares jumped about 50% on Monday.
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- Reuters reported that Ithaca Holdings is in advanced talks to acquire Bumble, valuing the app at approximately $1 billion.
- Bumble's shares surged by 50% on Monday, closing at $3.80, following the news.
Background and Recent Developments
- Bumble, founded by Whitney Wolfe Herd in 2014, was valued at $14 billion during its 2021 Nasdaq IPO.
- The app faced challenges with declining user engagement and sales, with paying users dropping by over 11% in 2025 and annual sales decreasing by nearly 10%.
- Whitney Wolfe Herd returned as CEO in March 2025, implementing changes like the AI dating assistant Bee and altering the main rule regarding the first message sender.
- A potential deal would end Bumble's five years as a public company.
Key Players
- Ithaca Holdings: Founded by Ravi Gupta and John Hegeman, Ithaca is an investor in tech companies.
- Ana Maria Constantin: Expertise in digital marketing, product management, and branding & identity, contributing strategies in the software/SaaS industry.
Unsure Future
- Neither company has disclosed a timeline for the potential deal or its specific terms.