SoundCloud is set to be put up for sale later this year, with its owners potentially seeking a price-tag in excess of USD $1 billion.
via: Vibe
The news arrived on Sunday (Jan. 7) as Singapore’s Raine Group and Temasek Holdings have reportedly begun looking into investment banks.
According to Billboard, the companies have actively pursued “initiatives internally that would increase the valuation of the company” since 2022. SoundCloud has been mulling over the decision to sell “for some time.” The publication also reports that SoundCloud’s COO/CFO Drew Wilson is looking to depart after nearly three years in his position.
“A lot of decision-making has been based on this,” a former employee revealed. “The ambition to reach profitability was not just for the obvious reason of being profitable. The bigger need was for this, to sell the company. The stakeholders have major investments; it’s time.”
In May 2023, the streaming company announced it would lay off 8 percent of its team. The decision was made so that the company could “achieve profitability” that year, CEO Eliah Seton typed in a company-wide email to staff in 2023.
Seton followed up his 2023 email with a 2024 update to the SoundCloud team on Monday (Jan. 8). Billboard reports that Seton confirmed the streaming service has become profitable and is on track to be sold.
“Now that we have achieved profitability and are making progress on our strategic plan, we have nothing but opportunity in front of us. As we have mentioned in previous All Hands [meetings] and AMAs, we will explore a range of options for our capital structure, but there is nothing to report right now, nor will there be any time soon.”
SoundCloud was founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss. The company was created to help creatives upload, promote, and share audio experiences like music, mixes, and podcasts. Sky reports that more than “40 million artists have released 320 million tracks on the platform.”
