Bumble has agreed to be taken private in an all-cash deal with Ithaca Holdings that values the dating-app company at $1.3 billion, the companies announced this week. Under the terms disclosed in Bumble's filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, shareholders will receive $6.05 in cash for each share of Class A common stock — a roughly 138% premium to the stock's unaffected closing price on October 9 and about a 119% premium to its 30-day volume-weighted average price.
An independent special committee of Bumble's board, advised by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and the law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell, reviewed strategic alternatives before recommending the deal. The full board approved it unanimously, with founder and chief executive Whitney Wolfe Herd recusing herself from the vote. Shareholder approval has already been secured through written consent from Blackstone affiliates and Wolfe Herd, who together hold enough voting power to clear the transaction without a separate shareholder meeting; investors will still receive a formal information statement as required under Delaware law.
A steep drop from Bumble's public debut
The deal marks a dramatic markdown from Bumble's 2021 stock-market debut, when the company was valued at roughly $14 billion. Its business has cooled sharply since: revenue for the second quarter of 2026 fell 15.2% year over year to $211 million, while paying users dropped 16.4% to about 3.2 million, reflecting what the industry broadly describes as swipe fatigue among younger users turning away from traditional matching apps.
Bumble has been trying to adapt, rolling out AI-assisted features and, in July, launching Plans, an app focused on organizing real-world group gatherings rather than one-on-one matches. Going private is expected to give the company room to keep experimenting without the pressure of quarterly public-market results.
Once the deal closes, Ithaca co-founders Ravi Gupta and John Hegeman will become co-chief executives of Bumble, working alongside Wolfe Herd, who is staying on. The company will remain headquartered in Austin, Texas, with additional offices in London and New York.
In Ithaca, we have found a partner who shares our vision, believes in our women-first mission, and is committed to investing in Bumble's future.
Whitney Wolfe Herd, Bumble founder and CEO
Bumble said it will file its third-quarter report with the SEC by November 9 but does not plan to hold an earnings call, given the pending transaction. The filing did not specify an expected closing date.
