US-based dating app producer Tinder yesterday announced a corporate venturing arm called Swipe Ventures that will focus on the dating and social media sectors.
Swipe Ventures will be headed by Sean Rad, who will step down as chief executive of Tinder. Greg Blatt, chairman and chief executive of Tinder’s parent company Match will add CEO of Tinder to his responsibilities.
The new unit will invest in startups, develop new businesses and will also be responsible for acquisitions. Swipe may acquire portfolio companies, though it has not set out specific exits.
The move is not the first by Tinder into the investment space. In September 2016, the company for example backed a $1.4m seed round for US-based social networking app developer Vina.
Launched in 2012, Tinder operates a mobile app that enables people to connect by scrolling through photos and swiping right if they want to initiate a chat. Users are only able to communicate directly if both parties swipe right on each other’s image.
Sean Rad said: “There is so much untapped opportunity in our space. My new role allows me to continue to contribute meaningfully to the overall strategy of Tinder, while expanding Tinder’s footprint through Swipe Ventures.
“Greg is absolutely the right person to continue to drive Tinder’s growth given his experience operating businesses at scale and his deep understanding of our business. We have worked closely together for a long time, and I’m incredibly excited about this next phase of our partnership.”