Liftoff, a global leader in performance marketing and monetization solutions for the app economy, announced that private equity funds managed by Blackstone (“Blackstone”) signed an agreement to sell a minority stake in Liftoff to General Atlantic, a leading global investor. As part of the terms of the transaction, long-time investor Blackstone will remain as the majority shareholder.
Liftoff is a leading AI-enabled end-to-end platform that enables mobile developers to build, drive discovery of, and monetize their apps. Blackstone drove the formation of the company from the transformative merger of its portfolio companies Liftoff and Vungle in 2021, which combined two scaled and highly complementary industry leaders. Following the merger, Liftoff has grown rapidly under CEO Jeremy Bondy and the current management team through an expanded portfolio of solutions and industry-leading product and technical innovation.
General Atlantic has a long history of investing in disruptive consumer technology businesses. General Atlantic will join Blackstone in supporting Liftoff’s next phase of growth as it scales its proprietary Cortex AI platform, builds on its leadership across the broader app economy, and looks to add capabilities through strategic M&A.
Jeremy Bondy, CEO of Liftoff, said: “This moment represents a potent combination of continuity and ambition. Our partnership with Blackstone has been transformative – over the past three years, we’ve merged Liftoff and Vungle, launched Cortex, and delivered significant momentum. The investment from General Atlantic is a testament to that progress, marking the next phase of our ascent and reinforcing our leadership across performance-driven mobile growth. While I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished, we’re still in the early innings of growth in a large and rapidly evolving category, with a team built for this moment and the rare opportunity to shape its future. We look forward to building the leading platform for the largest and fastest growing media environment in the world: the mobile phone.”
Tanzeen Syed, Managing Director and Head of Consumer Internet and Technology at General Atlantic, said: “We are thrilled to partner with Jeremy and his management team to help fulfill Liftoff’s vision of serving the mobile app ecosystem and continuing to power growth through its combination of innovative AI technology, superior execution, and unwavering customer centricity. Liftoff has reached an exciting business inflection point, and we look forward to providing support alongside Blackstone, who have shepherded the Company through a transformative period.”
Sachin Bavishi, Senior Managing Director at Blackstone, said: “It has been a pleasure to work alongside Jeremy and the entire management team over the past five years through Liftoff’s evolution into a leading mobile app growth platform. This investment is a prime example of Blackstone’s approach to partnering with highly talented management teams and deeply supporting them with value-added resources and expertise to drive material business transformation and outsized results for all stakeholders. We are thrilled to continue this journey with Liftoff and welcome General Atlantic as a new investor as we jointly support the company’s rapid growth trajectory.”
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and Jefferies LLC are serving as financial advisors and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is acting as legal advisor to Liftoff and Blackstone. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC is serving as financial advisor and Paul Weiss is serving as legal advisor to General Atlantic. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions and is expected to close in mid-2025.
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