Bumble Is Going Public, Should You Swipe Right?

Everybody’s favorite dating app (or worst nightmare depending on who you ask) has filed a confidential S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission, a first step toward its initial public offering (IPO) Bloomberg is reporting. The rumor is that the company is targeting a February IPO. In layman’s terms, what does that mean? Should all go according to plan, we’ll all be able to buy Bumble stock soon, should we decide we want it. So, should you buy Bumble when it goes public? Here are a few things to know about the company:

• Bumble was started in 2014 by Whitney Wolfe Herde who had been a co-founder of Tinder. Wolfe Herde is still the CEO.
• Wolfe Herd had left Tinder on pretty bad terms, filing a suit against co-founders Justin Mateen and Sean Red alleging sexual harassment and discrimination. That suit has since been settled. She credits that experience with giving her the idea for Bumble, where women make the first move.
• Bumble reportedly topped 100 million users as of this year.
• Per reports, Bumble generated $240 million in revenue in 2019 and has exceeded internal growth projections for the last two years.
• The app has grown beyond dating and now includes Bumble BFF for meeting friends and Bumble Bizz for professional networking.
• Match Group has apparently made offers to buy Bumble over the years for between $500 million to $1 billion.
• Bumble, which is backed by The Blackstone Group is seeking a valuation between $6 billion and $8 billion.

We’ll certainly be watching this one over the next year! Feature Image: Courtesy of Bumble