This morning Whitney Wolfe Herd became the youngest-ever woman CEO to take her company public. She did so as a second-time founder, leading a management team that is 56% female and board that is 73% female, and bringing to the forefront a platform that stands for kindness, equality and respect. We are deeply appreciative for every company that selects Accel as its partner, but in all candor today’s milestone resonates with us on a different, deeper level. It reminds us there is little more powerful than the intersection of an inspired leader and an idea whose time has come.   

Accel’s founders, Arthur and Jim, say frequently that we are in “the people business.” Those words never held more vibrancy than the first time we met Whitney.  Bumble is a formidable business: it’s a top-10 grossing iOS lifestyle app, with more than 42 million monthly active users, of whom nearly 80% come to Bumble via organic word of mouth. And the market opportunity is plain to see as well: 39% of couples today meet online, by far the most common source of relationships and growing exponentially. Yet our thesis on Bumble transcended sector themes and adoption curves; from the moment we met her we simply wanted to be in business with Whitney. 

Remarkable as today’s milestone is, the Bumble story is only beginning to unfold. As we wrote in our original investment memo, “Bumble will become the digital identity for women, the hub that powers and supports all of their key decisions. Through careful integration of platform-native experiences, marketplace exposure to brands who share their values, curated digital media, and intertwined physical and digital relationships, Bumble can craft a social network verticalized for the most powerful emerging demographic in the world.” Or more succinctly, as Whitney articulated in her shareholder letter, “We believe Bumble has the potential to become a preeminent global women's brand that will continue to support our communities on their relationship journeys on and off our platforms.” As the Bumble mission continues, we’ll remain active and appreciative shareholders, and we can’t wait for all that lies ahead.   

Congratulations to Whitney, cheers to Bumble, and thank you for being a part of the Accel family.

-Christine, Maya & Miles on behalf of Accel