France-headquartered media subscription service Cafeyn Group acquired Netherlands-based peer Blendle for an undisclosed amount yesterday, allowing media companies Axel Springer, Nikkei and The New York Times Company to exit.
Founded in 2014, Blendle runs a subscription scheme dubbed Blendle Premium which curates personalised digital news content from nearly 50 sources including The New York Times, Time Magazine, The Wall Street Journal and Vanity Fair. It has more than 1.5 million active users across Europe.
Nikkei and venture capital firm Inkef Capital had invested an undisclosed sum in the company in 2017, three years after a $3.8m round featuring Axel Springer’s corporate venturing subsidiary, Axel Springer Digital Ventures, and The New York Times Company.
Cafeyn Group president Ari Assuied said: “At Cafeyn our ambition is to give everyone unparalleled access to quality content. This acquisition enables us to accelerate our growth. We are very happy to onboard such a talented and passionate team of media experts into our group.”
