Who Owns Tinder?

Match Group, Inc., owns the Tinder dating app. Match Group is an American technology company that operates online dating sites. Match Group is a subsidiary of IAC Match, though it serves as a separate entity with its board of directors and management team. The company’s headquarters are in Dallas, Texas, USA.

A few other dating services in Match Group’s portfolio include Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid, and Match.com. While IAC is the Tinder parent company of Match Group, it doesn’t have 100% ownership of Match Group or Tinder.

Tinder significantly impacts the Tinder business, driving growth and user engagement. Match Group became a publicly traded company in 2015, allowing some investors to own a significant percentage.

Brief History of Tinder

In 2012, Sean Rad, Justin Mateen, and Jonathan Badeen founded Tinder. The three co-founders were students at the University of Southern California in 2012. At that time, they were working on a platform allowing businesses to send their customers gift cards. However, they discovered that those who viewed gift cards focused on pictures of people on gift cards rather than the information on the card.

As a result, they decided to create a dating app that focuses on users’ pictures. At first, they named their new dating app “Matchbox,” but they eventually changed the name to Tinder. The app aimed to make meaningful connections and cater to evolving cultural trends.

They launched the beta version of the Tinder app in September 2012. The beta version could work only on iOS devices at that time. The Tinder app became available on Android devices later in November 2012. The app quickly became popular, especially among college students, as it provided a way to find potential matches effortlessly.

The co-founders kept improving the app’s features and interface. In 2014, they introduced Tinder Plus, a paid subscription with additional premium features. This model contributed significantly to Tinder’s revenue growth and expansion into new markets.

Tinder also adapted to advancements in AI, allowing for more competent recommendations and improving match success rates. Data analytics became central to understanding user behavior, further refining the app. Competitors like Bumble, founded by Whitney Wolfe Herd, followed suit with innovative features. Whitney Wolfe, who was once a part of Tinder, leveraged her experience to create another thriving platform.

Today, Tinder remains a leader in the online dating industry, driven by extensive advertising campaigns and consistent product innovation. In 2024, it generated approximately $1 billion in revenue from its global user base.

However, it faces intense competition, with two of its closest rivals being Herd’s Bumble and Hinge.

Brief History of Tinder’s Co-founders

Sean Rad 

Sean Rad is an entrepreneur. He was born in Los Angeles, California.  He received a Business Administration degree and an Entrepreneurship concentration at the University of Southern California. Rad founded a few companies when he was in college. He served as the CEO of tinder after he co-founded it with Justin Mateen and Jonathan Badeen in 2012.

In 2016, he stepped down as CEO of Tinder, though he returned in August 2017 and served until December 2018, when he stepped down as CEO again. He is a philanthropist and has engaged himself in several philanthropic efforts.

Justin Mateen

Justin Mateen is an entrepreneur who studied International Relations at the University of Southern California. Justin Mateen served as Tinder’s Chief Marketing Officer and CMO after its founding. However, Mateen eventually left the company in 2014 over some controversies and allegations of sexual discrimination and harassment. He founded a few other companies after he left Tinder. He is also an advisor to some innovative tech companies.

Jonathan Badeen

Jonathan Badeen is a software developer and entrepreneur. He was born in Atlanta, Georgia. Badeen studied computer science at the University of Southern California. He worked as a software engineer in various tech companies after he graduated from school. Badeen served as the Vice President of Products while he worked at Tinder.

Role of Match Group in Tinder’s Operations

Match Group, the parent company of Tinder, contributes to the success of Tinder by performing the following roles:

Provides Technical Support

Match Group provides technical support such as database management and server hosting. Match Group also includes analytics tools and services to help Tinder understand how users interact with the app and improve its services based on users’ behavior.

Manages Tinder’s Finance

Match Group manages Tinder’s finances. The company also helps Tinder develop monetization strategies to ensure that Tinder generates profits. 

Match Group’s IPO

Match Group became a publicly traded company on 19 November 2015 on NASDAQ Global Select Market. Each share cost $12 then, and the company sold 33.3 million shares, generating $400 million. The stock’s price increased by over 20% when it became available for trading. Currently, each Match Group stock trades above $40.

Top Shareholders of Match Group

It’s important to note that top shareholders of Match Group own a significant part of the company. Hence, they also own a substantial part of Tinder. Here are the top shareholders of Match Group:

BlackRock, Inc.

BlackRock, Inc., a multinational investment company in New York City, holds 12.12% of Match Group shares, worth about $1.47 billion. It is the largest asset manager in the world, with about $10 trillion worth of assets as of January 2022. The company actively encourages investors to evaluate how their investments affect the environment and society.

Vanguard Group, Inc.

The Vanguard Group, Inc., holds 11.06% of Match Group shares, worth about $1.35 billion. Vanguard Group, Inc., is a registered investment advisor in Malvern, Pennsylvania, having approximately $7 trillion in global assets under its management as of January 13, 2021. The Vanguard Group, Inc., is currently the largest provider of mutual funds worldwide

Edgewood Management Company

Edgewood Management Company holds 5.69% of Match Group shares, worth about $692.8 million. Edgewood Management Company is an investment firm based in Greenwich, Connecticut. As of 2021, the company manages over $19 billion in assets.

Price (T. Rowe) Associates, Inc.

Price (T. Rowe) Associates, Inc., holds 4.34% of Match Group shares worth about $529 million. Price (T. Rowe) Associates, Inc., is a publicly traded asset management firm. As of 2020, the firm had $6.2 billion in assets under its management.

State Street Corporation

State Street Corporation holds 4.27% of Match Group shares, worth about $520.9 million. State Street Corporation is a financial institution in Boston, Massachusetts. The company had more than $4.4 trillion in assets under its management as of December 31, 2021.

Conclusion

Tinder is now one of the most popular dating apps worldwide, with millions of users in over 190 countries. Match Group owns Tinder, but the ownership of Match Group itself spreads across various shareholders, rather than just a single individual or group.