WEST HOLLYWOOD – Grindr, the dating and hookup app that boasts about 11 million gay, bisexual, transgender and queer users per month around the world, is preparing to go public this fall with a $2.1 billion valuation.
Ahead of its merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), the company formed a board comprised of 60% LGBTQ+ members and on Tuesday installed, as its new CEO, George Arison, the openly gay founder and former CEO of Shift Technologies.
The move marks the company’s second attempt at going public, after hopes for an initial public offering (IPO) were dashed in 2016, when Chinese company Beijing Kunlun Tech divested its shares of Grindr over concerns by the U.S. government regarding the potential for blackmail or espionage by the Chinese Communist Party.
Arison’s appointment to helm Grindr comes as the app has assumed a more active role in fighting the monkeypox virus (MPV) outbreak, which has overwhelmingly affected gay and bisexual men who have sex with men.
The news also arrives on the heels of controversy stemming from Facebook posts published by former Grindr CEO Scott Chen: “Some think marriage is between a man and a woman. I think so, too, but it’s a personal matter,” he wrote. “Some people think the purpose of marriage is to have your own biological children. It’s a personal matter, too.”
Some may have foreseen the change in leadership from the negative reactions to Chen’s comments at the time from other CEOs of LGBTQ+ dating apps – CEOs who, unlike Chen, were members of the communities they served.
LGBTQ+ people serve as CEOs of some of the most powerful companies in the world. Tim Cook, for instance, has led Apple since 2011, and the tech giant now has the largest market cap at $2.4 trillion.
NASDAQ listed companies with one or more LGBTQ+ board members, meanwhile, include Apple, Google, Papa John’s, and M&T Bank.
It is unusual, however, for a publicly traded corporation to be led by an LGBTQ+ CEO and majority-LGBTQ+ board of directors, as will be the case for Grindr if the acquisition is successful.
According to a press release from Grindr, LGBTQ+ identifying members of the company’s board are: “former United States Ambassador to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Daniel Baer; senior partner at Simpson Thacher, Gary Horowitz; CMO of Hootsuite, Maggie Lower; Investor and Tech Executive, Nathan Richardson; and SVP of Marketing and Communications at BigCommerce, Meghan Stabler.”
They, along with Arison and Grindr’s VP/Global Head of Communications, Patrick Lenihan, either declined to comment or did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
“Grindr is an unbelievable business and I am beyond excited to help them navigate through this next part of their journey. Their hard work and a laser focus on delivering great products to a starkly underserved market are inspiring, and deliver incredibly strong business results,” Arison said in a statement that accompanied the company’s announcement of his appointment as CEO.
Since it was launched in 2009, Grindr has faced criticism over its potential use for sexual exploitation, racism on the app, and concerns about its impact on mental health. A few years ago, the company was found to be sharing users’ HIV statuses and locations to outside vendors.
Grindr sought to combat racism and other forms of discrimination with its Kindr initiative, introduced in 2018. “Everyone is entitled to their opinion,” the company wrote. “Their type. Their tastes. But nobody is entitled to tear someone else down because of their race, size, gender, HIV status, age, or – quite simply – being who they are.”
Revamping its help center, community guidelines, and safety tips, Grindr has also worked to fight the sexual exploitation of minors and mitigate instances of bullying on the app.
A CEO who has a record of prioritizing diversity
As CEO of Shift Technologies, an online marketplace for buying and selling used cars, Arison prioritized diversity when taking his company public and choosing members of its board. It was important for Arison, himself an immigrant from the Eastern European country of Georgia, because data shows companies do better with women serving on their boards. And more to the point, considering his leadership at Grindr, he wanted Shift to “represent all the people [the company] caters to.”
Three of Shift’s eight board members were women, as of the company’s successful IPO via acquisition by a SPAC in 2020. “We’ve done our best to include men and women, straight and gay as well as immigrants and people of different ethnicities, heritages and races on our board,” Arison told Market Watch.
It is not just Arison who is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion when it comes to Grindr’s forthcoming debut as a public company. Grindr will “continue to expand the ways it serves the LGBTQ+ community, from products, services to the philanthropic and advocacy work done through Grindr 4 Equality [G4E],” said Jeff Bonforte, the company’s outgoing CEO, who will serve on the board.
The company’s press release describes G4E as a program that leverages “the Grindr app’s global reach and leadership to empower local LGBTQ+ activists, spread information, and empower our users in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights… Through G4E, we work with various groups worldwide to make HIV testing more accessible, encourage voting, and fight homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia.”
Former hedge fund manager and Grindr board member G. Raymond Zage said, in the company’s press release, “We are excited to bring this diverse and thoughtful board together with the talented Grindr team to grow the business and deepen its commitment to the LGBTQ+ community,” which he noted has traditionally been underserved.
“On behalf of my community, I can’t wait to work with this board and the impressive folks at Grindr to show up for even more LGBTQ+ people,” Lower said.