Category: All Investment Raises

Is On-Demand Dating A Tinder Killer

Posted on August 22, 2015

On demand datingMASHABLE – Aug 18 – Clover, Whim, Pure and HowAboutWe's Tonight app offer on-demand functions which cut to the chase so users can aggressively get on each others' calendars. Clover just closed $2M in funding (bringing total investment to $4M). Close behind Clover is upstart Whim, which launched in LA in 2014. Markedly different from Whim and Clover is the unabashedly more hookup-focused Pure, which is so radical and in-the-moment in its "demand" nature, that there are actually no profiles or Facebook integration. Having raised 10 times less investment capital than Clover ($400K versus $4M), Pure is already cash-positive.

by Mandy Stadtmiller
See full article at Mashable

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See all posts on Tonight              See all posts on Whim

Summarized by the Courtland Brooks team

Matrimony.com Files For IPO, Aims To Raise $53.7M

Posted on August 20, 2015

Matrimonycom logoREUTERS – Aug 19 – India's Matrimony.com, which runs online matchmaking sites, has filed for an IPO to raise Rs 3.5B ($53.7B). Existing investors, including US venture capital firm Bessemer Partners, will sell an additional 1.66M shares as part of the issue. Matrimony.com generated Rs 2.32B in revenue last year.

The full article was originally published at Times of India, but is no longer available.

See all posts on Matrimony.com

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.

Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting

Money Are Flowing Into Online Dating Startups

Posted on August 17, 2015

Funding trend idatingTELEGRAPH.CO.UK – Aug 17 – Early-stage funding to Internet dating companies has climbed in recent years, from $10.3M in 2010 to almost $65M in 2014, according to the investment database CB Insights. But many VCs still have a blanket ban on dating apps.There are the ethical considerations, which cause some investors to lump dating apps alongside tobacco and gambling companies under the category “do not touch”. Dating apps are also much harder to monetise. A successful product means to lose users, and this high churn requires these apps to rebuild their customer base constantly. Historically, exits from dating investments have been hard to come by, with an early shareholder’s best hope being that IAC will acquire the company.

by Lauren Davidson
See full article at Telegraph.co.uk

Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting

Asian Dating App Yogrt Raised $3M

Posted on August 13, 2015

Yogrt screenshotTECHINASIA – Aug 12 - Yogrt is a location-based dating app that uses games and quizzes as a tool to break the ice between couples-to-be. The startup has raised a $3Mn series A funding round from Centurion Private Equity and Linear Venture. The app plans to strengthen its presence in Indonesia and expand into other Southeast Asian markets.

by Nadine Freischlad
The full article was originally published at Tech in Asia, but is no longer available.

See all posts on Yogrt

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.

Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting

German Social Discovery App Raised $14.5 Million

Posted on August 12, 2015

Spotted logoPRNEWSWIRE – Aug 11 – Spotted is a social discovery app that connects people who cross paths every day. It turns missed opportunities into second chances. The startup raised $14.5M from Media Ventures GmbH from Cologne, and Prof. Wolf M. Nietzer's Wolfman Holdings GmbH, the Deutsche Balaton AG affiliate in Heidelberg, Germany.

The full article was originally published at PR Newswire, but is no longer available.

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.

Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting

Clover Raises $2M In Funding To Expand On-Demand Dating Business

Posted on July 24, 2015

Clover logoPR WEB – July 23 – Clover, the mobile on-demand dating service, has closed $2Mn in funding. The investment was led by New York based Social Starts with participation from a group of private investors. This brings the total investment in Clover to $4M. The company will use the funds for further expansion. Clover finds users a nearby date and suggests hotspots where the two can meet.

See full article at PR Web

See all posts on Clover

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.

Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting

Dating App iCrushiFlush Raises Funds From IDG Ventures

Posted on July 23, 2015

Icrushiflush logoECONOMIC TIMES – July 22 – The funds will be primarily used for product enhancement. The company did not disclose the amount. IDG Ventures has invested in companies like Flipkart, Yatra, Newgen, Lenskart, Vserv, Firstcry, Manthan Software and Zivame. iCrushiFlush is a casual dating app that helps connect people around their location.

The full article was originally published at Economic Times, but is no longer available.

See all posts on iCrushiFlush

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.

Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting

Paktor Lands $7.4M To Go Beyond Dating And Into Friendships

Posted on July 14, 2015

Paktor logoTECH CRUNCH – July 14 – Paktor, a service focused on Southeast Asia, has closed $7.4M Series B round that will go towards expanding its userbase and developing beyond dating to social discovery. Paktor raised $3M last Nov. Its registered userbase rose from 1.5M in Nov to ~5M today. Southeast Asia and Taiwan are their biggest markets. Indonesia, which has the world’s largest Muslim population, is on track to overtake Taiwan. Now, Paktor is focused on making its mark in other parts of Asia, particularly Japan and Korea. While Paktor doesn’t have a premium membership, it has tested features such as gifting, search base on premium metrics, and contacting 'top' users on each country’s leaderboard. It also runs group chat rooms.

by Jon Russell
See full article at Tech Crunch

See all posts on Paktor

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.

Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting

Dating App Once Raised $3.5M

Posted on July 10, 2015

Once dating appVENTURE BEAT – July 9 – New York-based app Once received a $3.5M seed round from Partech Ventures and some private investors. Once’s model is to send one match to each user at noon. Once users are paired up, they will see each other at the same time. Each person gets notified when the other person is looking at the profile. And, if both are interested, the app lets them talk. The app is similar to Coffee Meets Bagel which is not a coincidence. Both apps follow the lead of the South Korean app I-UM, founded in 2010.

by Sindy Nanclares
See full article at Venture Beat

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.

Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting

Google Billionaire Invests In Matchmaking Startup, Banihal

Posted on June 24, 2015

Banihal profile screenshotECONOMIC TIMES – June 22 – When Google was looking for investors in 1998, it was Dr. David Cheriton who wrote the first check. Today, the billionaire and Stanford University Computer Science professor invested in Banihal, an Indian matchmaking service. Banihal is in the early stages of startup in the company's first market, India.

See full article at Economic Times

This post also appears on InternetDatingInvestments.

Summarized by Courtland Brooks Internet Dating Marketing Consulting