Happn, a Paris, France-based hyper-localized dating app, closed a $14m Series B funding.
The round was led by Idinvest with participation from Alven Capital, DN Capital, Raine Ventures and private individuals Fabrice Grinda, David Wolfson and Gil Penchina.
The company, which has raised a total of $22m to date, intends to use the funds to expand into Asia and grow its presence in its existing markets in Europe, South America and the United States.
Led by Didier Rappaport, Founder and CEO, Happn provides a real-time, hyper-localized app, which allows people to discover others who have crossed paths with. Every time people cross paths with another Happn user, his or her profile appears on the app.
Launched in Paris in early 2014, the app is now in more than 25 major cities throughout the world with 6,5 million members.
FinSMEs
01/10/2015
Press Release
Dating App happn Raises $14 Million in Series B Round
As it grows to Over Six Million Users
Paris, France (October 1, 2015) — Happn, the hyper-localized dating app that connects people the moment their paths cross, closed a $14 million Series B funding round led by Idinvest with participation from Alven Capital, DN Capital, Raine Ventures and private individuals Fabrice Grinda, David Wolfson and Gil Penchina. To date, the company has raised a total of $22 million. The new funding round will be used to drive expansion into Asia and grow its presence in its existing markets.
“The mobile dating space has grown substantially in the last few years and all signs point to its continued proliferation with happn really defining the hyperlocal dating game,” said Didier Rappaport, Founder and CEO of Happn.
He continued: “We’ve experienced phenomenal global growth since launching last year, and we plan to continue expanding into more countries around the world.”
“In addition to expansion into new markets, this new round of funding will also enable us to grow our team and enhance the user experience by building new functionalities that add to the current features that our members already enjoy.”
The real-time, hyper-localized app, which recently reached six million global users in more than 25 cities lets users seize everyday coincidences, avoid missed connections and take advantage of paths crossed in real-life. Happn will continue growing its reach by expanding into Asia and increasing its presence in Europe, South America and the United States.
“Idinvest is thrilled to lead this round of financing and to support one of the most international Paris-born startups,” said Guillaume Durao, Investment Director at Idinvest. “We were impressed by the fast, global growth of Happn’s user base and by the app’s early retention and conversion metrics when we first met the management team. Even more importantly, we believe in the very fresh and modern product developed by the company and the positive, urban, trendy and fun associations made with the Happn brand in the dating space.”
“We’ve been supporting Happn since the very first version of the application a little more than 18 months ago,” said Jeremy Uzan, Partner at Alven Capital. “During this time, we’ve never doubted the ability of this exceptional team to position Happn as a global leader in the new generation of dating tools. We’re very proud to follow this adventure with Didier Rappaport and his team and to contribute by giving them the right means for their strong ambitions.”
“The Happn team has continued to significantly outperform, and we at DN Capital are happy to continue to support their expansion and development,” said Nenad Marovac, Managing Partner at DN Capital.
“Happn is revolutionizing the way we make connections and has emerged as a clear leader in the fields of social networking and online dating,” said Gordon Rubenstein, Managing Partner of Raine Ventures. “Happn embodies the key qualities Raine looks for in a portfolio company and has already achieved tremendous global growth in a very short period of time. We are excited to partner with Happn and its talented management team as it continues to gain momentum.”
ABOUT HAPPN
Happn is the very first real-life dating app that helps you discover the people you have crossed paths with who you would like to find again. Every time you cross paths with another Happn user, his or her profile appears on your app. The company launched in Paris in early 2014 and is now in more than 25 major cities throughout the world with 6,5 million members.