Blued Revenue, Valuation, Funding & Investors
Blued is valued at $300M as of November 2014, a 20.0x multiple on its last reported $15M revenue.
Last Blued valuation
$300M
Series B · Nov 2014
Last Blued funding round
$100M
Series D · Feb 2018
Blued revenue
$15M
Series B · Nov 2014
Key investors in Blued
Shunwei Capital
DCM Ventures
CDH Investments
Zhonglu Capital
Crystal Stream Capital
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UG Capital
About Blued
Blued is a Beijing-headquartered social app for gay men launched in 2012 that serves 60 million registered users across 190 countries with live streaming, group chats, and event planning features. The platform, operated by Blue City Holdings, facilitates video calls, health resource sharing, and LGBTQ+ community forums in 10 languages. Blued partners with health organizations like UNAIDS for HIV testing campaigns reaching 1 million users annually. Its parent company listed on NASDAQ in 2020 before delisting, with revenue exceeding $200 million from virtual gifts and ads.
Founded
2012
HQ
BeijingWebsite
Status
Privately held
Customer focus
B2C
Revenue model
Advertising, Product sales
Revenue
$15M (Nov 2014)
Valuation
$300M (Nov 2014)
Sectors
Blued Valuation
Blued is currently valued at $300M, based on its Series B in November 2014.
The $30M round was led by DCM Ventures and Shunwei Capital.
Blued valuation by funding round
| Date | Stage | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 2014 | Series B | $300M | 20.0x |
Blued Revenue
Blued's latest recorded revenue is $15M, as of its Series B in November 2014. At a $300M valuation, that implies a 20.0x revenue multiple.
Blued revenue by funding round
| Date | Revenue * | Valuation | Revenue Multiple | Stage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 2014 | $15M | $300M | 20.0x | Series B |
* Revenue (or ARR) figures are the values recorded alongside each funding round. Typically run-rate revenue at the time of the deal, or a reported LTM (last 12 months) revenue.
Blued Funding History
Blued has raised a total of $132M across 3 funding rounds.
Blued's first fundraising round was a $2M Series A in February 2014. The most recent completed round was a $100M Series D in February 2018.
Blued funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2018 | Series D | CDH Investments (lead); UG Capital | $100M | - | Blued, a Beijing-based gay social networking and dating app founded in 2012 by Ma Baoli (Geng Le), raised $100 million in its Series D funding round in early 2018, led by CDH Investments with participation from UG Capital. The app, the world's largest gay social network at the time with 40 million registered users as of February 2018 and 27 million users by end-2016, offers features like profile browsing, messaging, live streaming, games, and healthcare education, available in 13 languages with expansion into Southeast Asia, Latin America, Europe, and the US. The funding was intended for product optimization, platform diversification into vertical socializing, entertainment, and healthcare, user experience enhancements like video and AI features, and HIV/AIDS prevention efforts in partnership with governments and organizations. Previous rounds included a $1.6 million Series A in February 2014 from Crystal Stream Capital and Zhonglu Capital, a $31 million Series B in November 2014 from Shunwei Capital and DCM Ventures reportedly at a $300 million valuation, and a Series C in 2016 from Ventech China and Vision Knight Capital. Blued experienced explosive growth in 2017 from live streaming, mobile marketing, games, and international markets, with expectations of increased monthly active users and associated revenue. Blued's parent company, BlueCity Holdings, later went public in 2020 on Nasdaq via an $84.8 million IPO, valuing it at approximately $462 million post-IPO, allowing exits for investors like New World Development and China Mobile. CDH Investments retained an 8% stake post-IPO, with founder Ma Baoli holding 36.4%. The Series D marked the final pre-IPO private funding round. |
| Nov 2014 | Series B | DCM Ventures (lead); Shunwei Capital (lead) | $30M | $300M | Blued is a China-based gay dating app founded in 2012 by Ma Baoli (Geng Le), initially as a Grindr copycat, offering features like chatting, voice messages, and live streaming targeted at the LGBTQ community. By late 2014, it had grown rapidly to 15 million users, with 3 million overseas and 20% daily active users, up from 3 million users earlier in the year. The app positioned itself as China's leading gay social network, emphasizing user understanding and international expansion potential. In November 2014, Blued raised $30 million in a Series B round led by DCM Ventures and Shunwei Capital (sometimes referenced as Beijing-based VC), following a $1.6 million Series A earlier that year from Crystal Stream and Zhonglu Capital. Multiple sources confirm this round valued the company at $300 million post-money. The funding was intended for global and national expansion, leveraging DCM's international resources to support Blued's growth amid an estimated 70 million gay people in China. Later traction included 27 million global users by 2018 and filings showing $29.3 million revenue in Q1 2020. The company continued raising capital, including a Series C in 2016 at reported $300 million valuation from Vision Knight Capital, Ventech China, New World Development, and China Mobile, followed by a $100 million Series D in 2018 led by CDH Investments. Shunwei Capital remained Blued's largest investor with a 12.3% stake as of IPO filings. |
| Feb 2014 | Series A | Crystal Stream Capital; Zhonglu Capital | $2M | - | - |
Who has invested in Blued?
6 investors have backed Blued across its funding rounds, including Shunwei Capital, DCM Ventures, CDH Investments, Zhonglu Capital, Crystal Stream Capital and UG Capital.
Lead investors include CDH Investments, DCM Ventures and Shunwei Capital.
Blued Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UG Capital | -- | 1 | Participant | Feb 2018 |
| Beijing | 1 | Lead | Nov 2014 | |
| Beijing | 1 | Participant | Feb 2014 | |
| Shanghai | 1 | Participant | Feb 2014 | |
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Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples
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Start Free TrialInvestments by Blued
Blued has invested in 1 company to date.
Latest investment by Blued was on March 20th 2019. Blued invested in Mengmei in their $15M Series A round.
Latest Investments by Blued
| Description | - |
| HQ Country | |
| HQ City | - |
| Deal Date | 20 Mar 2019 |
| Round | Series A |
| Raised | $15M |
| Investors | CDH Investments; NewBeeVC |
| Valuation | undisclosed |
| EV/Revenue | |
| EV/EBITDA | |
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Blued investments and their VC round multiples. Start Free Trial | |
Blued Competitors
Blued competitors include listed companies like Match Group and Dear U, and private ones like Crossed, Douguo, Fandom and Konvo.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Tampa, FL | Private | - | - | $200M | - | |
| United States | Publicly listed | $3.5B | $939M | $10B | 3.7x | |
| Beijing | Private | - | - | $300M | - | |
 South Korea | Publicly listed | $61M | $16M | $297M | 2.8x | |
| San Francisco, CA | Private | - | - | $284M | - | |
 Gold Coast | Private | - | - | $326M | - |
Blued Public Comps
Blued is still privately-owned, but its public comps include Dear U, Zhihu, IBJ Inc., Sunfun Info, Bumble, DouYu, Matrimony.com, Cookpad, Wantedly and VNG Corp..
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $61M | $16M | 3.0x | 2.8x | 11.4x | 6.7x | |||
| $410M | ($34M) | - | - | - | - | |||
| $130M | $27M | 1.8x | 1.4x | 8.9x | - | |||
| $83M | $15M | 1.3x | - | 7.3x | - | |||
| $966M | ($793M) | 0.8x | 0.9x | (1.0x) | 2.9x | |||
| $569M | ($5M) | - | - | - | - | |||
| $48M | $6M | 1.9x | 1.8x | 14.8x | 13.8x | |||
| $34M | $2M | - | - | - | - | |||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Blued competitors and their valuation data. Start Free Trial | ||||||||
Common questions about Blued
| When was Blued founded? | Blued was founded in 2012. |
| Where is Blued headquartered? | Blued is headquartered in Beijing, China. |
| Is Blued publicly listed? | No, Blued is a private, VC-backed company. |
| What is Blued's valuation? | Blued was last valued at $300M in its Series B in November 2014. |
| How much funding has Blued raised? | Blued has raised $132M across 3 funding rounds. |
| What was Blued's last funding round? | Blued's last funding round was a $100M Series D in February 2018, led by CDH Investments. |
| Who are Blued's investors? | Blued's investors include UG Capital, Shunwei Capital, Crystal Stream Capital, Zhonglu Capital, DCM Ventures and CDH Investments. |
| What is Blued's revenue? | Blued's latest recorded revenue is $15M (November 2014). |
| What is Blued's revenue multiple? | Blued's latest valuation implies a 20.0x revenue multiple ($300M valuation on $15M of revenue). |
| Which companies are comparable to Blued? | Companies comparable to Blued include Crossed, Match Group, Douguo, Dear U, Fandom and Konvo. |
| How many companies has Blued invested in? | Blued has invested in 1 company, including Mengmei. |
| What was Blued's last investment? | In March 2019, Blued invested in Mengmei's $15M Series A alongside CDH Investments and NewBeeVC. |
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