Bumble Inc.
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Online dating, social networking |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Founder | Whitney Wolfe Herd |
| Headquarters | Austin , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Whitney Wolfe Herd (Founder, Executive Chair), Lidiane Jones (CEO) |
| Products | Bumble, Badoo, Fruitz, Official, Geneva |
Number of employees | 240 (2025) |
| Parent | Blackstone Inc. (controlling interest) |
| Website | bumble |
Bumble Inc. is a U.S.-based holding company that manages online dating and social networking platforms, including both Bumble and Badoo. Established in 2014 by Whitney Wolfe Herd, Badoo was initially co-founded in 2006 by Andrey Andreev. The valuation of Bumble Inc. exceeds $1 billion.
The firm's headquarters are located in Austin, Texas, and as of 2025, it employs around 240 individuals worldwide.
History
After departing from Tinder, where she served as co-founder and Vice President of Marketing, Whitney Wolfe Herd launched Bumble. Andrey Andreev, the co-founder and CEO of Badoo, approached Wolfe Herd, leading to a collaborative partnership. Wolfe Herd took on the role of founder and CEO at Bumble, utilizing Badoo's existing platform infrastructure.
The team brought on former Tinder associates Chris Gulczynski and Sarah Mick to develop and release the Bumble app, which officially launched in December 2014. By November 2017, Bumble’s valuation surpassed $1 billion. During 2017, Bumble was the primary investor in Chappy, a UK-based dating app for gay men, which ceased operations in February 2020.
In 2019, Blackstone Inc. acquired a controlling interest in MagicLab—the parent company overseeing Bumble and its related apps—assigning it a valuation of $3 billion. The following year, MagicLab rebranded as Bumble Inc., becoming the overarching entity for both Bumble and Badoo.
Bumble made its public market debut on the Nasdaq in February 2021, generating $2.2 billion through its initial offering with a valuation above $7 billion. Its first acquisition occurred in February 2022 with the purchase of Fruitz, a French freemium dating application. In May 2023, Bumble expanded further by acquiring Official, an app designed to enhance romantic relationships.
Confronted with industry headwinds, Bumble announced workforce reductions affecting 350 employees—approximately 30% of its staff—in February 2024 as part of corporate restructuring efforts. Later, in June 2024, the company acquired Geneva, a group chat app aimed at friend-making, to broaden its social networking portfolio.
In January 2024, Wolfe Herd shifted to an executive chair position while appointing Lidiane Jones as CEO; Wolfe Herd plans to resume her CEO duties in March 2025. In June 2025, Bumble implemented additional layoffs totaling 240 positions (30% of personnel) to achieve an estimated annual cost savings of $40 million amid ongoing turnaround initiatives.