Yubo, the social platform where Generation Z creates communities of friends around the world, announced a $12.3 million (approx €11 million) fundraising round led by Iris Capital and Idinvest Partners, alongside historical investor Alven, Sweet Capital, and Village Global.
This funding will enable the company to accelerate its international expansion into new regions and work on the technological development of the social platform. To support its growth, Yubo will hire 35 new staff members in the next six months, growing its total headcount to 50 people.
Built by Sacha Lazimi, Jérémie Aouate, and Arthur Patora in 2015, Yubo currently has over 25 million users. Since its launch, Yubo’s users have formed more than 2 billion friendships on the platform, sent over 10 billion written messages, and launched over 30 million live video streams. The company has achieved gross revenue of approximately $10 million as of the end of 2019.
Designed for young people between 13 and 25, Yubo lets users create live video discussion spaces where both streamers and viewers interact through a live chat. Importantly, the social network favors sociability, sharing, and authenticity rather than the approval mechanisms and influencers systems of traditional social networks.
With strong adoption in the USA and Canada, the United Kingdom, the Nordic countries, Australia, and France, Yubo aims to conquer new territories, notably Japan and Brazil. Right now, the company is using artificial intelligence tools for age verification through its partner application Yoti and aims to stay ahead of technological progress in the field of online safety.
Sacha Lazimi, Yubo CEO & Co-Founder, said:
Yubo is a response to a fundamental need of Generation Z: socializing and creating friendships in the digital world in the exact same way as in real life. This funding round will let us reach new technological milestones and further our international footprint. We are especially proud that such recognized funds have granted us their confidence and backing to support our ambitions: becoming the world-leading social platform, born in France and based on European standards.
Main image credits: Yubo
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